Dr Edward E. Kimbrough III

Memorial service for Edward E. ("Ed") Kimbrough, III, M.D., 78, will be held Saturday at 3 p.m. at Shandon Presbyterian Church. Visitation will be Friday 6-8 p.m. at Dunbar Funeral Home, Devine Street Chapel, and also at the church following the service. Ed died peacefully at home on January 24th, 2008. Born September 29, 1929 in Gainesville, Georgia, he was the only son of the late Edward E. Kimbrough, Jr. and Theodora Hamm Kimbrough. After graduating from Georgia public schools, Ed attended Vanderbilt University, where he was a member of Phi Delta Theta. At Vanderbilt, he earned his undergraduate and medical degrees. Ed continued his medical training in Minneapolis, Minnesota, specializing in orthopedic surgery. There, he met Jeanette Ludgate, a nurse from Bartlett, New Hampshire. They were married in 1954. After his marriage, Ed continued his medical training while serving the United States Army at bases in Alaska, Texas, and Virginia. After obtaining his honorable discharge from the army, Ed came to Columbia in 1963 to join the Moore Orthopedic Clinic. He became a pioneer in the field, helping to perform some of the first total hip replacement and other orthopedic surgeries that helped improve the quality of life for numerous previously disabled people. Ed served as physician for the USC athletics teams for more than fifteen years and became a lifelong Gamecock fan. Ed also became an educator, teaching students and training residents in orthopedic surgery at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine. He would ultimately become Chairman of the Department of Orthopedics and is now Distinguished Professor Emeritus. He remained devoted to the betterment of the medical school even after retiring from practice in 1995. Ed was a member and leader of multiple professional organizations from the local level to the national. He was elected president of the Eastern Orthopedic Association, the Southern Orthopedic Association, the South Carolina Orthopedic Association, and the Columbia Medical Society. He was a delegate to the American Medical Association for 6 years. These organizations provided Ed and Jeanette the opportunity to travel and to meet and befriend people from all over the country and the world. Ed was an active member of the local community. He served on the Richland County School Board from in the early 1970's, during the height of the debates over school integration, which Ed strongly favored. He was also an active member of Shandon Presbyterian Church, where he served on numerous committees and as Elder. Retirement did not mean that Ed slowed down. Ed remained active in his church and civic causes. He was an active member and president of Kiwanis. He was co-founder with Dr. Herb Niestat of the popular local group Physicians Enjoying Active Retired Life (PEARLS). He brought his orthopedic skills out of retirement for a medical mission trip with Jeanette to Nairobi, Kenya where he worked tirelessly for a month to bring care to the local people. He and Jeanette continued to travel frequently, especially returning again and again to Italy. He also enjoyed tennis, playing several times a week with very good friends. Ed will be remembered by all who knew him for his intelligence, compassion, generosity and uncommon grace. A devoted and loving husband, Ed is survived by his wife of 53 years, Jeanette, and his four children: Catherine Self of Sharpsburg, Ga., Nancy Norton of Gainesville, Ga., Carolyn Stanton of Cheraw, S.C., and Edward E. Kimbrough IV of Columbia, S.C. In addition, he is survived by his sister, Theodora Jenkins of Gainesville, Georgia, and her husband Thomas Jenkins. Also surviving are his ten beloved grandchildren: Christina Kimbrough Self and Robert Edward Self, Theodora "Teddie" Norton, Frank Kenimer "Tripp" Norton III, Emilie Ludgate Norton, Wilson Edward Stanton, Kate Kimbrough Stanton, David Charles Stanton, Edward Ernest Kimbrough V, and Henry Hamm Kimbrough. Also, son-in-law Frank K. Norton Jr. and daughter-in-law Melissa "Lisa" Kimbrough. The family sincerely thanks Ed's physicians, their staffs, caregivers, hospice workers, members of Shandon Presbyterian Church, and friends who comforted, ministered and attended to him during his illness. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorials be sent to Shandon Presbyterian Church, USC School of Medicine Scholarship Fund, or to a charity of one�s choice. Please sign online guest book at www.dunbarfunerals.com