Bryant Taylor Aldridge

Bryant Taylor Aldridge was born in Kinston, NC and educated at Grainger High School where he was the only student to be Class President all four years, the only student to win twelve varsity letters and the only student who was co-captain of the football, basketball and baseball teams. A high school football All American, he was a co-captain in the 1951 Shrine Bowl Game and the East-West All Star Game. Bryant was a 1956 graduate of Duke University where he was class president his freshman year and earned three varsity letters in football. In two of his more memorable games, he helped lead Duke to victories over No. 1 Ohio State in 1955 and over Nebraska 34-7 in the 1955 Orange Bowl. In 1963 Bryant earned his Master of Science Degree in Hospital Administration from Northwestern University. A graduate of the Executive Program at UNC Chapel Hill, he also did Post graduate work in Hospital Administration at Cornell University. In 1966 Bryant was chosen to oversee the planning, construction and management of Nash County’s newest facility, Nash General Hospital. He went on to serve as its President for 32 years. During that time he conceptualized and brought to Nash General numerous health care delivery innovations including: The first all-private room public hospital . . . now the industry standard! Pioneering the day hospital concept and building North Carolina’s 1st free-standing out-patient hospital Nash Day Hospital in 1983,  Enabling Nash General Hospital to participate in the first organ donation procedure in eastern North Carolina in 1984. Beginning Hospice of Nash General to provide specialized care for the terminally ill and their families in 1986, Bringing state-of-the-art heart diagnostics to this area with the 1990 opening of grant-funded Hardees Heart Center, Spearheading the 1994 acquisition of Coastal Plain Hospital to provide comprehensive inpatient and outpatient mental-health treatment in Eastern NC, and, Expanding availability of health care services by purchasing Community Hospital in 1997. Bryant Aldridge’s influence helped make Nash General a leader in the health care field. While achieving all these milestones, the Silver General of Nash’s Hospital; also served as Chairman or President of several civic groups including the American Red Cross, the Rotary Club, Carolinas Hospital and Health Services and Volunteer Hospitals of America Carolinas & Tennessee.

Inducted into Hall of Fame 2014
Deceased