Two-time alumnus, long-time professor Bridges passes away
Former Southwestern Seminary professor of 27 years and two-time alumnus Tommy Lee Bridges passed away on October 9, 2025.
“The Southwestern community joins me in offering thanksgiving for the life and ministry of Dr. Bridges while offering prayers and Christian sympathy for the Bridges family,” said President David S. Dockery, who was a student at Southwestern while Bridges was part of the faculty.
Bridges was born on February 15, 1938, in Morrilton, Ark. He spent time in the Navy and completed his undergraduate studies at Ouachita Baptist University before receiving his Master of Religious Education and Doctor of Education from Southwestern.
Bridges served as minister of education at churches in Texas and Arkansas and as the director of special mission ministries for the Arkansas Baptist State Convention from 1972-1977.
In 1977, Bridges was named assistant professor of administration and later he was promoted to professor. He taught at Southwestern, including its extension centers in Houston, Shawnee, and San Antonio, for 27 years, retiring from full-time teaching in 2004.
While at Southwestern, Bridges spent some of his summers in Mexico studying Spanish so he could teach in Spanish-speaking seminaries in Mexico and South America, serving in countries such as Peru, Chile, Paraguay, Colombia, and Argentina. He also had a teaching ministry in Russia. In 2016, he received an honorary Doctor of Ministry from the Baptist Theological Seminary in Trujillo, Peru, in recognition for his partnership and impact on the school.
“Tommy Bridges was a fine teacher and practitioner of church administration at Southwestern Seminary for more than 25 years,” Dockery said. “He exemplified the best aspects of the work of Christian education as seen through the years on the Southwestern campus, beginning with J. M. Price and continuing to this day.”
He is survived by his wife of 64 years, Janice; son Steve and daughter Vickie; four grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren. A memorial service will be held at Gambrell Street Baptist Church on Oct. 18.
