John Billy Gentry ’55

Dr. J. B. Gentry, 89, of Shelby, NC, passed away January 26, 2024. Son of the late John William Gentry and Sarah Ella Brooks Gentry, Bill was born in Statesville on September 25, 1934. A board-certified pathologist in Shelby and Kings Mountain for 54 yrs., he attended Mitchell Community College (A.S.) where he met his future wife, Bernice Troutman (m. 1955), and where he would return to serve several terms as alumni association president. From Mitchell, he went to Davidson College on an academic scholarship (B.S., 1955) and later graduated from UNC’s School of Medicine with honors (1959).

A Marine, he served his country; a Red Cross volunteer, he served his community.

A brilliant, gracious man, he will be greatly missed by family and friends, whom he cherished.

Visitation: Troutman Funeral Home Tues., 1-30, 6-8 pm; Service: Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Troutman, Wed., 1-31, 2 pm; Interment: Troutman Family Cemetery