James D. Beard's Obituary
James David Beard, 77, of Memphis, TN. Before Dr. James Beard began his lengthy career at the Memphis Mental Health Institute in the 1960’s, alcohol and drug addiction was widely misunderstood. His trailblazing research led to changes in the way society perceived addiction and how care for addicts should be administered. On October 7th, Dr. Beard succumbed to a sudden heart attack, passing away at the age of 77. Jim Beard was born July 21, 1937, in Dayton, Ohio, to the late Birdella and James Beard. He met the love of his life, Patty Brown, in high school. Excelling in sports, he was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds. Instead, he attended DePauw University, where he was president of Delta Tau Delta fraternity; he graduated in 1959. He and Pat then married and moved to Memphis. Jim earned his Ph.D from the Univ. of Tennessee College of Medicine in Physiology while studying the clinical effects of alcohol. After a few years of research, Dr. Beard began to label alcohol addiction a disease, opening doors to what would become a new and widely recognized medical speciality. During this time, he worked on behalf of Pfizer, lectured at universities worldwide on alcohol addiction, and taught at the Univ. of Tennessee Medical School. He was on committees at the National Institute of Health in Washington, DC, presenting their research findings to Congress. In the 1960’s Jim began his love of golf. He most recently shot “his age” for the third time and was proud of his six hole-in-ones. He was a charter member of Balmoral Presbyterian Church, serving as elder numerous times. His profound love of music, coupled with his beautiful voice, led him to sing in choirs throughout his life. In retirement, Jim was active at First United Methodist Church at Reynolds Plantation, GA. He was a current member of Germantown Presbyterian Church. Nothing brought him more joy than being a father and grandfather. Survived by his beloved wife of 56 years, Patricia, sons, Jim (Marybeth) of Louisville, KY, and Chris (Gwen) of Memphis, 3 grandsons, Jimmy, Tommy, and Jack, granddaughter, Alex; sisters, Phyllis Clingman and Barbara Severson of Dayton, OH. Memorial Service at Germantown Presbyterian Church at 2 p.m., Friday, October 10th. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in his memory to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital or Habitat for Humanity.
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