Hugh W. Armstrong ’49

Hugh W. Armstrong ’49, former Monroe, N.C., veterinarian, died Jan. 13 in Matthews, N.C. Armstrong was born Jan. 2, 1921, in Gastonia, N.C., son of the late Oscar Armstrong and Kate Rankin Armstrong. After graduating from high school, Armstrong joined the U.S. Air Force, where he served from 1942 until 1945. He attended Davidson, Presbyterian Junior College, and N.C. State College before attending the University of Georgia School of Veterinary Medicine in 1949. He married Alida Fair Stevenson in 1950, and graduated from veterinary school in 1953. He began his veterinary practice in Monroe, N.C., in 1953 as Monroe Animal Clinic and later, as Armstrong Animal Hospital, and he retired in May 2008. He was a life member of the N.C. Veterinary Medical Association, honor roll member of the American Veterinary Medical Association, and a member of the N.C. Academy of Small Animal Medicine. He was a member of First Presbyterian Church of Monroe, where he served as a deacon and elder for several years. He was a member of Kappa Sigma Fraternity at Davidson and a past member of the Monroe Lions Club. He also served on the Union County Board of Health for nine years. Armstrong was preceded in death by his wife, Alida, of 55 years, and his brother, George Rankin Armstrong. He is survived by his son, Rankin Armstrong (Debbi); daughter, Ann Armstrong McGhee (Karl), 627 Twin Pine Rd., Pittsburgh, PA 15215, and daughters, Sara Staton McGhee and Erin Emery McGhee; niece, Allison Elizabeth Armstrong; and other loving nieces and nephews.