Herbert William “Bill” Bondurant, Jr. ’37, of Atlanta, Ga., died Aug. 22 at the age of 93.
Bondurant was an orthopedic surgeon, golfer, outdoorsman, husband, and father of five.
He was born in Dallas, Tex., on April 19, 1916, to Alyne Thomas Bondurant of Nashville, Tenn., and Herbert William Bondurant of Union City, Tenn.
He attended Davidson and later graduated from Emory University School of Medicine in 1940.
During WWII, he worked as a surgeon in the Army Medical Corps. He was the first resident at Scottish Rite Children’s Hospital, and also completed residencies at Grady Memorial Hospital and at the University of Illinois Research and Education Hospital in Chicago. He began his 45 years of private practice in Atlanta as an orthopedic surgeon in 1949 and served on the staff at Crawford Long, Emory University, and Piedmont hospitals. He was president of the Atlanta Orthopedic Society, the Georgia Orthopedic Society, and the Association of Southern Railway Surgeons. He was a member of many medical organizations, including the Southern Medical Association, Southeastern Surgical Congress, Southern Orthopedic Society, and the Crippled Children’s Division of Georgia. In 1950, Bondurant was certified by the American Board of Orthopedic Surgeons, and he was admitted to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons in 1954.
He also enjoyed many years as a teaching professor in orthopedic surgery at Emory University.
Bondurant was an avid tennis player and golfer. He was a member of the Kiwanis Club and a member of All Saints’ Episcopal Church. Over the years, he spent many weekends hunting and fishing with friends and family at Burge Plantation.
He was always well known and loved for his cheerful disposition and infectious laugh, and he put friends and strangers alike at ease with his generous and gregarious nature. In his later years, he was often seen with his faithful canine companion, Peanut. He enjoyed all things in nature and frequently sat with his wife, Virginia, on the back porch of their townhome watching the birds.
Bondurant was preceded in death by his daughter, Ann Bondurant Rall. He is survived by his wife of 46 years, Virginia Kelley Bondurant, 3528 Paces Place NW, Atlanta, GA 30327; his four children, Herbert William Bondurant III (Jacki Martin), Alyne B. Hunt (Walter), Virginia Page Bondurant, and Kelly Lynn Bondurant (Michael Burch); his four grandchildren, Hunter Thomas (Laura), Ann Kennedy Thomas, Maximilian Hunt, and Ella Burch; and his three great-grandchildren, Megan Thomas, Ryan Thomas, and Amelia Thomas-Horowitz.