Dr. Marion Berton Ridley, 61 of Tampa, departed this life on Sunday July 1, 2018 at the Moffitt Cancer Center after a sudden and brief illness. Dr. Ridley was raised in Jasper, TN where he graduated Valedictorian from Marion County H.S. in 1974. He attended UT Chattanooga where he was the youngest student member of the UT Board of Trustees, a member of Lambda Chi Alpha and a member of the Singing Mocs. In 1978 he began his studies of medicine at UT Memphis where he also completed his surgery residency. In 1984 Dr. Ridley was accepted into the Johns Hopkins ENT residency program in Baltimore. After his ENT residency he completed a Facial Plastics fellowship at U. of Michigan, Ann Arbor. In 1989 he began his career at USF in Tampa where he became a Professor of Otolaryngology and the Chief of ENT at the James Haley VA. He remained there until his death.
In addition to medicine Dr. Ridley had a life-long passion of music. He sang in the choir at Calvary Episcopal Church in Memphis, the Men and Boys choir of Old St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Baltimore, and the Men and Boys choir of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Tampa. He had the honor to sing at The White House on two occasions. His greatest passion was opera. His ENT specialty was in the treatment of vocal disorders.
Dr. Ridley is preceded in death by his parents Bonnie Lynn Cagle Ridley and Billy Joe Ridley. He was the devoted, loving husband of Mark Lee Lundy, beloved brother of Lynn Ridley Woodall (Ed Woodall), cherished uncle of William Joseph Woodall, Benjamin Marion Woodall, Stevee Nicole Pentecost and Aiden Cole Walker and dearest son-in-law of Norma Jean and Robert Paul Lundy. He also leaves behind numerous beloved cousins and his beloved Andrien family in Verdun, France.
The funeral will be held at 11:30AM Thursday July 5th at St. John’s Episcopal Church, 906 S. Orleans; Tampa, FL. Burial-side service will be held at 10AM Saturday July 7th at Pine Grove Cemetery, Jasper TN.
The family requests, in lieu of flowers, that donations be made to Moffitt Cancer Center, Foundation, in memory of Marion Ridley, 12902 Magnolia Drive MBC-FOUND, Tampa, Florida 33612 or moffitt.org/giving.
