Dr. James Robert Beshear, M.D.

James Robert Beshear, M.D., affectionately known as "Dr. Bob" to thousands of Alabama Families, passed away peacefully in Montgomery on September 3, 2026 at the age of 84, following an extended illness.

He was born in Dawson Springs, Kentucky, on September 29,1941, the second of five children and the eldest son of Orlando Russell Beshear and Mary Elizabeth Joiner Beshear. He grew up in Dawson Springs, graduating from Dawson Springs High School in 1959, where he was active in basketball, band, and choir, and graduated as valedictorian of his class.

He earned a B.S. in Zoology from the University of Kentucky in Lexington in 1963 and his M.D. from Duke University School of Medicine in 1967. He completed his internship and first year of pediatric residency at Duke University Medical Center from 1967 to 1969. His training was then interrupted by two years of mandatory military service, during which he served in the U.S. Navy Medical Corps as a commander and Lieutenant Commander from 1969 to 1971 at the Boone Health Center, Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base in Little Creek, Virginia. He completed his final year of training as a senior resident in Pediatrics at the University of Virginia Hospital in Charlottesville from 1971 to 1972.

He met Lynn Hester Taylor, the love of his life and soul mate, while serving as an intern in Pediatrics at Duke University Medical Center in January 1968, and they married on November 2, 1968. Together they had three children and six grandchildren.

Dr. Beshear was in private pediatric practice at The Lexington Clinic in Lexington, Kentucky, from July 1972 to June 1978 and then in private practice in Montgomery, Alabama where he founded Physicians to Children, which affiliated with Children's Hospital of Alabama Health System in 1996. He believed in the intrinsic goodness of every individual, and this conviction gave him an extraordinary ability to listen to and affirm the person in front of him, whether they were a patient, a parent, a family member, or a friend. Following 45 years of caring for thousands of children, he retired in 2016.

In addition to his medical practice, Dr. Beshear was an ardent advocate for children at both state and local levels. Born into a politically active family, he made skillful networking and effective leadership central to his approach. While in Kentucky, he partnered with his brother Steve Beshear, then a member of the Kentucky House of Representatives, to secure state funding for the expansion of the neonatal intensive care unit at the University of Kentucky's Albert B. Chandler Hospital.

Bringing that experience to Montgomery, he led several initiatives, including co-founding the Gift of Life Foundation in 1988 to provide prenatal care to low-income women; chairing the Governor's Task Force on Children's Health Insurance, 2000-2001; serving as President of the Alabama Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, 2001-2003; helping create SCHIP, the State Child Health Insurance Program; chairing the Alabama Emergency Response Commission's Committee on the Uninsured; and serving as a leader in the Child Health Access Program.

Family and patients always came first, but Dr. Beshear also loved model trains, with elaborate layouts he built as both a child and an adult. He was an avid sports fan, following University of Kentucky, Duke, and Alabama basketball, as well as Alabama football, and he enjoyed casual golf (played by "Snider Rules," of course). He played guitar and electric keyboard, sang for many years in the tenor section of the First Methodist Church Choir, and loved trips to the Gulf beaches and driving his pontoon boat on Lake Martin. He also delighted in international travel, tending his garden, and good conversation, and he was known for his laughter and gift for storytelling. He took part in the AUM Osher Lifelong Learning Institute and followed politics, government, and policy affecting children and families with great enthusiasm.

One of his greatest rewards was being recognized in 1988 by The Alabama Journal for the significant role he played in the newspaper's Pulitzer Prize - winning coverage that helped move the state to action on infant mortality.

Awards & Honors

His awards and honors included the Wallace Alexander Clyde Distinguished Service Awards for Excellence in Pediatrics (2007); the AAP Award for Outstanding Achievement in Child Advocacy; the Award for Outstanding Service in Development for Alabama's SCHIP; and the AAP Award for Community-Based Health Initiative. In November 2025, the University of Alabama at Birmingham established The James Robert Beshear, M.D. Endowed Medical Scholarship in his honor to be awarded to medical students and residents with an interest in practicing Pediatrics or a pediatric subspecialty.

Memberships

He was a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics (FAAP), a member of the American Medical Association, a member of First United Methodist Church in Montgomery, Alabama, and a graduate of Leadership Alabama, Class X.

Family

Dr. Bob and Lynn Taylor Beshear were married for 57 years. He is survived by her and their three children: Elizabeth Lynn Beshear Toft, Ph.D. (Mark); Courtney English Beshear Cooke (Aaron); and James Ross Beshear (Katherine). To his six grandchildren he was "Bopp": Joanna Ridley Toft, Caroline Virginia Toft, Alexander Edward Cooke, Ruth Brevard Beshear, Hattie Wakefield Beshear, and James Thomas Beshear. He is also survived by his two brothers, former Kentucky Governor Steven Lynn Beshear and David Russell Beshear; his brother-in-law, Ed Miller; his nephews Jeffrey Scott Beshear, D.V.M., and The Honorable Andrew Graham Beshear, Governor of Kentucky; and his nieces Najia Reem Kweik and Amanda Catherine Miller Traylor (Ryan).

He is also survived by his great-nieces and great-nephews, Madison Shelby Furlow (Trent), Nicholas Ryan Beshear, William Bradley Beshear, Lila Breanne Beshear, Carter Joseph Simms Traylor, and Dawson Ryan Traylor.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Orlando Russell Beshear and Mary Elizabeth Joiner Beshear; his sisters, Mary Ann Beshear Miller and Nancy Beshear Kweik; and his nephew, Glenn Allan Shelby.

A family and friends visitation will be held on Sunday, September 13, 2026 at 1:00 PM at First United Methodist Church of Montgomery followed by a Celebration of Life Service at 2:00 PM.

The Beshear Family is immensely grateful for the love and support provided by numerous friends, former colleagues, his church, Baptist Health System, his physicians, Enhabit Home Health, and caregivers through Answered Prayer Home Care Service.

Memorial Contributions

Contributions may be made to The James Robert Beshear, M.D. Endowed Medical Scholarship, UAB Heersink School of Medicine AB 930E, 1720 2nd Avenue South, Birmingham, AL 35294; The Gift of Life Foundation, 1348 Carmichael Way, Montgomery, AL 36106; First United Methodist Church, 2416 West Cloverdale Park, Montgomery, AL 36106; or The Montgomery Academy, 3240 Vaughn Road, Montgomery, AL 36106