Albert M. Bringardner

Albert Matthew Bringardner, husband of the late Patricia Palmer Bringardner, died March 30, 2023. 

Albert was born in 1928 in Columbus, Ohio to Dorothy Bergen Bringardner and Edwin William Bringardner.  He attended Holy Rosary Elementary School and St. Charles Preparatory High School.  While an undergraduate at Ohio State University, he met Patricia Palmer.  They married in 1952.  In 1953, Albert and Patricia celebrated the birth of the first of their eight children and Albert’s graduation from Ohio State University School of Medicine. 

After an internship at Mount Carmel Hospital in Columbus, Dr. Bringardner entered the U.S. Navy during a peacetime “doctor draft” that uprooted the family to Norfolk, Virginia.  He served as a medical officer in the 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean. 

In 1960, having completed his specialty training in obstetrics and gynecology at the Ohio State University Hospital, Dr. Bringardner moved to Painesville, Ohio to join the practice of Drs. Hanahan and Colopy.  Drs. Rutenberg and Basquinez later joined the practice. 

During his 35 years of practice, Dr. Bringardner was active in several medical organizations and served as the president of the Lake County Medical Society.  From 1994 to his retirement in 1997, he was Vice President for Medical Affairs of the Lake Hospital System.

He was an active member of St. Mary’s Painesville, serving on the Parish Council, Finance Committee, and Bereavement Committee.  He was also a eucharistic minister and tutored students in reading at St. Mary’s Elementary School.  He was the founding president of the Lake-Geauga Serra Club, an international organization that promotes and supports vocations to the priesthood.

He enjoyed birdwatching, keeping those darn squirrels away from the birdfeeders, gardening, cultivating roses, driving his convertible, cheering Ohio State’s football team to victory, backgammon, hosting family gatherings, a red-hot game of hearts, and noting that of the more than 6,000 babies he delivered, not one was named Albert.

After putting eight children through college, Dr. Bringardner answered a call to provide free obstetric and gynecological care in the Caribbean, New Mexico, and at the Lake County, Ohio Free Clinic. 

Patricia died in 2010 after 57 years of marriage.  In 2018, Dr. Bringardner moved from Painesville to Texas to be near family and lived there for the last years of his life. 

He was preceded in death by his brother Edwin, who was killed in World War II, his brother Thomas, his brother David, his sister Carolyn Klunk, his son-in-law Michael Rocklen, and his grandson Christopher David Mahoney.   

He is survived by his sister Mary Segal of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, his brother William of Columbus, Ohio, eight children: Ed (Pascale) Bringardner, Amy Bringardner, Tim (Kathy) Bringardner, Betsy (John) O’Donnell, Mary Pat (Mike) Mahoney, Joellen Bringardner, Brian Bringardner, and Laura (Rob) Armstrong, 14 grandchildren, five great-grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews.

A funeral mass will be held on June 24, 2023, at 2:00 p.m. at St. Mary’s Church, 242 North State Street in Painesville, Ohio.  Calling hours will be at the church one hour before mass. The mass will be livestreamed.  Please go to  https://www.facebook.com/stmarypvl

In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to Birthright Lake, Inc., which assists pregnant women and families with babies and small children.  (BirthrightLake.org)

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