Dr. Glenn Jackson Bridges, Jr. of Tennille, Georgia passed away on September 14, 2020, at the age of 85. Graveside services will be held at the Magnolia Cemetery in Augusta, Georgia on Wednesday, September 16, 2020 at 2:00 P.M.
Glenn was born October 27,1934, in Augusta Georgia to Dr. Glenn Jackson Bridges, an Atlanta urologist, and Margaret Raymond Bridges, a teacher and education activist. He received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Georgia in 1956, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and Omicron Delta Kappa. He graduated from the Medical College of Georgia in 1960. He completed his internship at Parkland Hospital in Dallas. He also served in the U.S. Public Health Service overseeing the Clinton Indian Hospital in Clinton, Oklahoma. He completed his residency in Urology at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta and the Veterans Administration Hospital in Decatur, GA. He practiced urology for nearly 50 years, mostly in private practice in Atlanta and later taking a position at the VA hospital in Dublin, Georgia before retiring.
A third-generation physician, Glenn had a passion for his medical practice and his patients, and he was known for combining strong medical knowledge with surgical excellence. He was the first private doctor in Atlanta to perform lithotripsy to pulverize kidney stones so the stones could be passed without surgery or extreme pain. Most of all, however, he brought to his practice a kind and caring spirit and a gentle and tender bedside manner.
He approached his myriad activities and interests with vigor and enthusiasm, demonstrating that one is never too old to learn or try something new. During high school he combined school with work on his family Dunwoody chicken farm, attending to the chickens, milking the cow, and performing other tasks. One summer during the 1950s he and a friend drove non-stop from Atlanta to Fairbanks, Alaska, where he worked construction. He was a track and cross-country star on the varsity teams at University of Georgia. During his medical training he participated in amateur wrestling tournaments and joined an early soccer club in Atlanta. He took up flying when young (inspired by Dodgie Stockmar of the “Flying S Ranch” in Villa Rica) and owned an airplane during his years in Oklahoma. During his later medical training in Atlanta he also flew with the Civil Air Patrol. He became enthusiastic about motorcycles and engaged in Enduro racing, also riding a Harley Davidson that was about his own size. He loved horseback riding, sailing, canoeing, hiking, and golf. He was an avid Bulldogs football fan. He played clarinet, learned the banjo, and loved to play the harmonica. Having taken tap dancing lessons from former vaudeville performer Jack Eppley in his youth, he returned for more lessons at age 50 and was a standout performer at a recital of Jack Eppley’s dance class in the Fox Theater. He built his own cabin on a family property in Druid Hills, handling the heavy equipment in the project himself. He was also one of the pioneers of the revitalization of Inman Park, carrying out one of the first restorations of a Victorian mansion. In his later years he bought and renovated an old farmhouse in Dublin, Georgia, built a grass airstrip behind the home, and oversaw the building of two airplanes that he kept in a backyard hangar and flew from his own airstrip. He was always able to tell a good joke. He relished irreverent humor, influenced on occasion by his urological expertise. He loved being a gentleman farmer; he and his partner Robbie Williams operated a thriving flower business on their Chinaberry Ranch near Dublin, Georgia, for a number of years.
Glenn is survived by his partner of 30 years, Robbie Williams of Tennille, Georgia; his children Susannah Glenn Bridges Burley (David) of New Orleans, LA and Lucy Caroline Bridges Driebe (Charles) of Atlanta, GA; his grandson Sidney Glenn Burley of New Orleans; his brothers Chandler Raymond Bridges (Βeverly) of Marietta, GA and Andrew Bridges (Rebecca Lyman) of Woodside, CA; his nephews and nieces Douglas Altizer (Gail Rothman) of Atlanta, GA, Chandler R. Bridges, Jr. of Bloomington, IN, Meredith Bridges (Will McSwain) of Pittsboro, NC, Kate Bridges-Lyman of Woodside, CA, and Thomas Bridges-Lyman of Woodside, CA; and his great-nephews and great-nieces Haegan Altizer, Baylen Altizer, Hazel Altizer, Benjamin Bridges, Clifford Bridges, Everest McSwain, and Serena McSwain. He was predeceased by his sister Lucy Bridges Altizer.
The family thanks the dedicated staff at the Tennille Retirement Home who provided him with tender care and peace of mind during his final days.
Donations may be sent to the Alzheimer’s Association 106 SRP Drive, Suite A, Evans , GA 30809 or St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital, P.O. Box 1000, Dept. 142, Memphis, TN 38148.
Friends may also pay their respects on Thursday, September 17, 2020 from 9:00 A.M. to 11:00 A.M. at May and Smith Funeral Home in Sandersville.
May and Smith Funeral Directors is in charge of these arrangements.