Ernest C. Lineberger, M.D., LTC (Ret.), 85, died Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2003, at a local hospital, with family members at his bedside. A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 5, at the Eagle United Methodist Church, with Pastor John Grimsted officiating. Arrangements are by Summers Funeral Homes, Ustick Chapel, Meridian. Dr. Lineberger was born Jan. 22, 1918, in Rock Hill, S.C., to Cole O’Dell Lineberger and Pauline Faye Guntharp Lineberger. He married Wilma McNabb on June 25, 1949, at Fitzsimons Army Medical Center in Denver. Dr. Lineberger graduated from the Citadel in 1940, receiving the president’s key for high scholastic achievement (equivalent of Phi Beta Kappa). He earned his medical degree from the Medical University of South Carolina, and completed a surgical internship at the Los Angeles County Hospital. He completed a general orthopaedic residency at Fitzsimons Army Medical Center in Denver, and a pediatric orthopaedic residency at Shriners Hospital in Honolulu, Hawaii. Upon graduation from the Citadel, Dr. Lineberger received a regular Army commission in the infantry. Following completion of medical school, he was re-commissioned in the Medical Corps. Highlights of his 24-year Army career included service at the U.S. Army General Hospital in Okinawa during World War II, establishing the first orthopaedic residency program at Tripler Army Medical Center in Honolulu, and serving as the chief of orthopaedic surgery at Fort Campbell, Ky., home of the 101st Airborne Division and the 3rd Army area specialized treatment center during the Korean War. Following retirement from the Army, Dr. Lineberger was one of the original members of the Chattanooga Orthopaedic Group where he practiced for 11 years while the group grew from two to eight members. He was on the teaching staff of the orthopaedic residency program at Baroness Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga, the past president of the Tennessee Orthopaedic Society, past president of the Middle Tennessee Medical Society, an emeritus member of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, an emeritus Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, and a lifetime member of the Military Officers Association, the Disabled American Veterans, and the Elks. Dr. Lineberger’s hobbies included gardening, fishing, hunting, bridge, and traveling. He was also an avid reader, and greatly enjoyed watching his beloved Atlanta Braves win baseball games. Dr. Lineberger is survived by his wife of 53 years, Wilma Lineberger of Boise; three daughters, Debbie Restivo and her husband, Tom, and their children, Joseph and Lindsay, all of Frontenac, Kan.; Margaret Clark and her children, Molly, Becca, Roger, Chris and Ben, all of Boise; Mary Caudle and her husband, Michael Caudle, M.D., and their children, Sarah, Rachel and Abby, all of Maryville, Tenn.; and a son, James Lineberger and his wife, Julie and their children, Jenna, Regan and Connor, all of Boise. Dr. Lineberger was preceded in death by his parents; and his son-in-law, J. Roger Clark, M.D. The family wishes to acknowledge the kind and loving care of Dr. Jesse Sandoval, Dr. Cliff Tenley and Shirley Lyman, LPN, all of St. Luke’s Internal Medicine, Dr. Barry Cusack, and all of the staff of St. Luke’s Meridian Medical Center, particularly everyone in the Emergency Room, 4th Floor med/surg and the Critical Care Unit. The family requests no flowers, but suggests memorials may be made to the Disabled American Veterans, or the building fund of Eagle United Methodist Church.
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