The death of James C. McElroy Jr. on Sunday leaves a void in the Rush Health Systems community and at his business, McElroy Truck Lines, impacting those he served in life.

Mr. McElroy, or “Buddy,” died at the age of 79, according to his obituary, and leaves behind his wife, Joy, and sons Glenn, Jay and Sean.

Jay McElroy, 51, raised his children to have the same commitment to work as him, teaching them to work on the trucks at his business as soon as his sons were old enough.

“Work was really important to dad,” Jay McElroy said. “As early as I can remember we had jobs around the house… it really shaped us into who we are today.”

Jay McElroy serves as the president of McElroy Truck Lines, supervising the flatbed trucking company that transports cargo all over the eastern United States. 

“It all started in our backyard,” Jay McElroy said. 

Jay McElroy said the company has about 800 employees throughout the United States, growing from the one pulpwood truck James McElroy purchased in 1964 as a side business to his work at Rush. 

“He was a very driven person, probably the most driven person I’ve ever met,” Jay McElroy said. “Some might think that’s a negative thing but he was still compassionate, still giving. He was very concerned with people and their problems. 

“I saw him over the years help a lot of people who promised they would pay him back and we all knew they wouldn’t. But that didn’t matter to him.”

Mr. McElroy started at Rush in 1960 after earning a business administration degree from Southern College, joining as a purchasing agent, according to Rush Health Systems. 

By 1967, Mr. McElroy became the administrator of Rush Foundation Hospital and Rush Medical Group (the group of physicians affiliated with the hospital).

While in that role, Mr. McElroy recruited more than 50 physician specialists, opened the state’s first single-room maternity unit, established the region’s first neonatal intensive care unit and opened the region’s first pain treatment center, according to Rush. Rush Foundation Hospital expanded to become the Rush Health System, which includes seven hospitals and 30 clinics across the region.

Mr. McElroy retired from his position as CEO and president in 1999 but continued to serve as the chairman of the Rush Health System’s Board of Trustees.

Wallace Strickland, CEO and president of Rush Health Systems, described Mr. McElroy as a man of many talents, such as recognizing other’s talents to help them achieve their personal best and adapting the many changes in healthcare over the last five decades.

“I am very fortunate to have had him as my mentor and Rush is very fortunate to have had a man of his wisdom and integrity as the head of our Board of Trustees,” Strickland said in a statement. “He has held fast to his belief in putting patient’s needs first and I believe that has been a major impacting force in what has allowed our health system to enjoy continued success.”

Rick Barry, an attorney, worked alongside Mr. McElroy on Rush’s Board of Directors from 2011 until Mr. McElroy’s death, calling him an energetic man of integrity.

“His word was his bond,” Barry said. “He ran a tight ship. He was a good man in every way.”

Barry recalled a year that Mr. McElroy felt Rush had underperformed and he brought all of the board members hiking in Western Alabama. 

“He said, ‘Guys, we’ve got to pick up the pace and do better.’ And we did do better the next year,” Barry said. “He’s going to be missed by the folks at Rush. We’re going to miss his leadership.”

Visitation for Mr. McElroy will be from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday at the Community Seventh-Day Adventist Church at 6258 Highway 39 in Meridian. Funeral services will be held at 1 p.m. Friday at NorthPark Church, at 7770 Highway 39, Meridian. 

In lieu of flowers, the family requested that donations be made to MD Anderson Cancer Center.