By all accounts, Dr. Mitchell Young’s life was well-lived.

Those who knew him describe him as an athlete, a Boy Scout, a hero, a soldier, a role model for a former presidential candidate, friend, husband and father.

Young died Thursday at his home in Leary, Texas, following a brief illness. He was 79.

“Dr. Young was a gentleman who had a loving presence and expressed compassion, dignity and integrity for every person, man, woman or child,” said Sister Mary Damian Murphy, vice president of mission integration at CHRISTUS St. Michael Health System in Texarkana...