NATCHEZ — After decades of serving the Natchez community, Dr. J.R. Todd Jr. will close the doors of his medical practice for the last time today.

The Natchez native started his career in the impoverished Delta community of Mound Bayou as a sophomore medical student.

It was a busy time. When he finished his first year, he said he had delivered approximately 70 babies.

He would one day become the Mound Bayou Community Hospital director of the outpatient department and go on to work at Meharry Medical College in Tennessee and at a private practice.

Todd eventually returned to Natchez and started his practice in 1976, founded on a philosophy.

“My belief was that your doctor ought to live in the neighborhood in which he works,” Todd said.

He still lives approximately a block away from his practice on North Martin Luther King Jr. Street.

Former Natchez Mayor Phillip West, one of Todd’s patients, said it was a different time for African Americans who wanted medical care in the 1970s. Todd was the first African-American doctor West’s parents went to, he said, possibly the first doctor ever.

West said many people had a particular mindset when it came to some white doctors.

“African Americans held they were just a number when they went to the doctor,” West said.

“That was the nature of the mindset of African Americans in terms of their access to healthcare.”

West said Todd also helped out patients who had difficulty paying for treatment.

“He was not just about making a dollar,” West said.

Outside of the doctor’s office, Todd also became active in the community, becoming involved in various political campaigns, organizations and took a passionate interest in the history of the area.

One year in the 1980s, Todd wrote a weekly article about slavery for The Bluff City Post. West said he recalled hearing Todd talk on the radio about his local knowledge.

“He was always willing to share that privately or publicly,” West said.

Todd also became a charter member in the local branch of the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity alongside local attorney Everett Sanders who said Todd was instrumental in establishing the fraternity.

Another member, Michael Winn, said Todd’s commitment always stood out.

“He has a life of service, demonstrating what it truly means to give back,” Winn said.

In 2005, the fraternity named a scholarship after Todd The scholarship helps send students from surrounding counties to school. West, who was mayor at the time, declared Dec. 14 Dr. J.R. Todd Day.

“It’s going to be a real loss for our community with him retiring,” West said.

Sanders described Todd’s retirement as “bittersweet,” because so many people have come to depend on him.

“At the same time I’m happy for him because it’s a well-deserved retirement,” Sanders said.

Winn also recalled Todd’s dedications to his patients, and to his profession.

“He’ll be sorely missed,” Winn said.

Todd said he has mixed emotions about retiring and leaving his patients

“It’s difficult to separate from them,” Todd said.

Once he’s retired, Todd said he plans to write a book about his experiences in medicine in the state.

He has another thing he wants to do, too.

“I’m going to be a troublemaker,” Todd said, jokingly.