Paul Wilson McMullan

     Paul Wilson McMullan of Hattiesburg, Miss., died Tuesday of complications following liver resection surgery at University of Alabama Hospital in Birmingham, Ala.
     McMullan was born Feb. 6, 1929, in Lake, Miss., to Mary Lucy Pace and William Patrick McMullan. He was lovingly reared by his parents and by his stepmother, Charlotte Yates McMullan, after his mother died when he was 12.
     Before graduating from the University of Mississippi in 1954, he served with the U.S. Air Force from 1951-1952 in Korea, receiving a meritorious commendation ribbon and medal, and a Korean service medal with three bronze stars .
He was married to Mary George (Georgie) Watkins for nearly 56 years. They lived in Newton, Miss., for the early part of their marriage and then moved to Hattiesburg in 1965.
     He had a distinguished banking career with professional affiliations, positions, and honors too numerous to list. Among those of which he was proudest were his service as chairman of the board of directors of the Newton County Bank, as chairman of the board of directors and chief executive officer of First Mississippi National Bank, and as chairman of the board of trustees of Forrest General Hospital; and his reception of the Pine Burr Area Council Boy Scouts of America Distinguished Citizens Award in 2002.
He was a life-long member of First Presbyterian Church of Hattiesburg.
     McMullan was intelligently and avidly interested in everything around him, from politics and current events to his six grandchildren, who loved him dearly. He had a rare and wonderful generosity of spirit, and a positive outlook on life that characterized his love for it. He expected and saw the best in everyone.
     He is survived by his wife, Georgie of Hattiesburg; his son, Dr. Paul Wilson McMullan, and wife, Jenny Kate Herring McMullan of New Orleans, LA; and his grandchildren, Mary Collins McMullan, Katherine Ridley McMullan, Elizabeth Pallie McMullan, Lucy Wilder McMullan, Charlotte Tindall McMullan, and William Duncan McMullan. He was pre-deceased by his brother, William Patrick McMullan, and is also survived by many greatly loved nephews, nieces, cousins, and friends.
     A graveside service will be held at 1 p.m. at the Newton Cemetery in Newton, Miss., on Thursday, May 12. The family will receive friends afterward in the lobby of the Newton County Bank.
     Memorials can be sent to French Camp Academy (www.frenchcamp.org <http://www.frenchcamp.org>, One Fine Place, French Camp, Miss. 39745) or to the Charles Simeon Trust (www.simeontrust.org <http://www.simeontrust.org>, P.O. Box 15212, Chicago, Ill. 60615).