L.D. Beard Jr.'s Obituary
L. D. Beard, 91, passed away July 8th, 2024. He was born on December 13, 1932 in Dallas, Texas. He was predeceased by his wife of 58 years, Betty Terry Beard, in 2016. He is survived by his children: Murray Lee Beard (Wendy), John David Beard (Amy), and Sara Beard Tilton (Thomas); grandchildren, Justin Tyler Beard (Margaret), Christopher Shelton Beard (Jessica), and William Duncan Beard (Allison Hatfield), Leann Catherine Beard, Anna Marie Beard, and Laura Elizabeth Beard, as well as six great-grandchildren; and his sister, Betty Beard Bruce. He was born to middle class workers in Dallas during the Great Depression. His father was a carpenter and cabinet maker and his mother was a school teacher. L. D.’s family moved from Dallas back to West Tennessee and he graduated from Whitehaven High School in 1950. L. D. worked for Firestone at their factory in Memphis after high school before enlisting in the U. S. Air Force in 1953. He served in the Air Force in Korea and the United States until his discharge in early 1957, with most of his time served as a radio operator for the Strategic Air Command, a job that required a very high security clearance. He married Betty Terry Beard in April of 1958. In 1960 he left Firestone to take a job at Richards Manufacturing Company as the shipping department supervisor. At that time Richards was a small company in the orthopedic medical device business. L. D. used the experience he had gained working for very large entities in Firestone and the Air Force to begin applying systems management to different parts of Richards and retired from Richards in 1983 after becoming CEO of the company. Richards is now known in Memphis as Smith & Nephew Orthopedics. Following Richards, he partnered with an orthopedic surgeon in Indianapolis along with two Indiana businessmen to start a company named Biotechnology, Inc. that purchased Warsaw Orthopedic in Warsaw Indiana. Warsaw Orthopedic primarily manufactured common orthopedic surgical implants on contract for larger companies such as Zimmer, Biomet, and others. L. D. then assumed the role of CEO of Biotechnology, Inc. By 1987 Biotechnology had partnered with a world-renowned orthopedic surgeon in Mexico City to begin producing one of the early implant systems to provide for fixation of vertebrae in spinal disorders to help with healing and pain for patients with a variety of vertebral disorders. Biotechnology had also merged with a local Memphis company, Danek, Inc., founded by another alumnus of Richards Manufacturing. In 1991 the company, then known as Danek Group, Inc., went public with a listing on the NASDAQ exchange. In 1993, Danek Group merged with another leading spinal medical device company in France, Sofamor, S.A., and they formed Sofamor Danek Group, Inc. The company subsequently listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1993. In 1993 L. D. retired from active management with Sofamor Danek, but remained on the Board of Directors until the company’s sale to Medtronic, Inc. closed in 1999. That company is now known as Medtronic Spine. After retiring, L. D. served on the boards of directors for several small companies in Memphis in the medical device business or in other areas related to serving medicine, freely sharing his experience and advice. In spite of his great successes in the business world, L. D. remained a humble man who was dedicated to his family and to helping others. L. D. loved spending time with his family, especially his grandchildren. He loved fishing, spending time on the beach in Sanibel, Florida, and traveling with Betty as well as his children and grandchildren. L. D. was a generous supporter of the Memphis Zoo, LeBonheur Children’s Hospital, and numerous other charities in Memphis as well as around the nation. He leaves behind a legacy of love for his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.
The family requests that memorial donations be sent to Methodist LeBonheur Children’s Hospital or the Memphis Zoo.
Services will be held on Monday, July 15, 2024 at 1:00pm in the Riverside Chapel at Memorial Park Funeral Home. The family will receive friends for visitation an hour prior to the service starting at 12:00pm. Entombment will take place in Memorial Park Mausoleum with a reception to follow in the Memorial Park Parkside Event Center.
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