T. Massey Bedsole, who served on the University of Alabama’s Board of Trustees from 1979 to 1988, died on New Year’s Day.

He was the University’s oldest trustee emeritus, meaning he was an honorary member of the board but was no longer active. However, Bedsole remained interested and involved in the University of Alabama System campuses.

Bedsole lived a life of leadership and left a legacy that can be felt through the many organizations he was active in. Bedsole attended the University of Alabama, where he received his undergraduate and law degrees.

After graduation, he enlisted in the Naval Air Training Service as an apprentice seaman, served as a Navy pilot in the Pacific Theatre and left the Navy with the rank of lieutenant commander. After the war, he began his law practice. He also served as a trustee for the University of Mobile for almost 40 years. He was the chairman of committees of the Mobile, Alabama, and American Bar Associations, as well as president for the Mobile County Bar Association in 1960.

While on the Board of Trustees from 1979 until his retirement in 1988, Bedsole chaired the Investment Committee and served on numerous other committees, including both Finance and Legal Affairs. In 1981, he was admitted into the Alabama Academy of Honor, a prestigious group whose membership is limited to 100 living distinguished Alabama citizens.

“T. Massey Bedsole served on the Board of Trustees during a very pivotal time in the history of our University system,” said Kellee Reinhart, spokeswoman for the Board of Trustees of the University of Alabama System. “He was a wise adviser to our chancellor and campus presidents and carried out his responsibilities in a very thorough fashion.”

Frank Bromberg Jr., who served on the Board with Bedsole in the 1980s, was on many committees with Bedsole and remembers him as an affable trustee who got the job done.

“He was very faithful, and he came to every meeting,” Bromberg said. “He was very vocal and had a wonderful demeanor. A lot of things trustees talk about are subjects you have to handle in a confidential way. He was great at that. He was a fine trustee.”

Pam Parker, the vice president of advancement at the University, remembers Bedsole not only as a trustee member, but also as a friend.

Her first memory of Bedsole was at a breakfast they both attended. As a speaker was giving a blessing for the food, everyone in the room kept hearing a familiar sound—

that of the Alabama fight song. Looking around, trying to find where the fight song was coming, Parker discovered the culprit— it was Bedsole’s musical tie. For years when he would give blessings he would always end with the valediction of “Roll Tide.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone who loved the University more than T. Massey Bedsole,” Parker said. “He was one of those special people. He was always there if you needed help; whether it be recruitment or fundraising, his door was always open.”

Both Parker and Bromberg remember Bedsole as a huge Alabama football fan. Bromberg can remember sitting next to Bedsole at Alabama football games.

“He had the University at heart,” Bromberg said. “I admired him a great deal”