TAFP Past President Leah Raye Mabry, MD, RPh, FAAFP dies at 86

Leah Raye Mabry, MD, RPh, FAAFP, RP, a pioneering physician, pharmacist, educator, and TAFP Past President, died May 29, 2025. She was 86.

Mabry served as president of TAFP from 1997 to 1998, and was a lifelong leader in family medicine, education, and organized medicine at the state and national levels. Her professional contributions and generous spirit left a lasting mark on generations of Texas physicians, students, and communities.

Born July 26, 1938, in Harlingen, Texas, Mabry defied convention from an early age. She was the youngest of three sisters and known for her fierce independence. After graduating from Harlingen High School in 1956, she enrolled at the University of Texas at Austin, where she made history in 1956 as the first female percussionist in the Longhorn Band. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy in 1963.

Mabry worked as a pharmacist for nearly two decades before entering medical school at the age of 40. She graduated from the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio in 1982 and completed her residency at Medical Center Hospital in San Antonio.

She practiced family medicine in Pleasanton, Texas, for many years before joining the CHRISTUS Santa Rosa Family Practice Residency Program in San Antonio, where she served more than a decade as associate program director, mentoring hundreds of young physicians.

Mabry was an exceptional leader for her local chapter, TAFP, and AAFP. She served as a Texas delegate and alternate delegate to the AAFP Congress of Delegates and ultimately rose to the role of Speaker of the Congress — one of the organization’s highest elected offices. She also served on multiple AAFP and TAFP commissions, was the Texas Family Physician of the Year in 2000, and won TAFP’s Physician Emeritus award in 2021. She was also a registered parliamentarian and active in parliamentary organizations, including the National Association of Parliamentarians and the American Institute of Parliamentarians.

In 1998, Gov. George W. Bush appointed her to the Texas State Board of Medical Examiners, where she served until 2020. A passionate advocate for medical standards and patient care, she was instrumental in helping shape policies that impacted physicians and patients statewide.

Mabry was known for her philanthropic heart as much as her clinical and academic accomplishments. She was a major supporter of TAFP and the TAFP Political Action Committee. Her giving inspired the creation of new philanthropic award levels within the organization. She also volunteered with Doctors Without Borders, offering medical care in underserved regions of Peru and Mexico, and served locally through the Pleasanton Rotary Club and the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo.

A celebration of life will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, July 26, at Weed-Corley-Fish Funeral Home in Austin — on what would have been her 87th birthday.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Longhorn Alumni Band General Scholarship or the TAFP Foundation.

Dr. Leah Raye Mabry lived boldly, served selflessly, and mentored tirelessly. She leaves a legacy of excellence in family medicine and a path for others to follow. Read her obituary for more.