Shown here in front of Cannon Pharmacy are (from left) Jessica Justice, Ashley Chapman, Sarah Griffin, Marianne Cannon, Bruce Cannon, UNC Health Blue Ridge President and CEO Gary Paxson, UNC Health Blue Ridge Chief Operating Officer Drew Thomas, UNC Health Blue Ridge Executive Director of the Cancer Center and Pharmacy Services Mandy Taylor, Eva Ginalski, Kailey Buchanan, and Lynne Mould. Pharmacy staff not pictured are Josh Blackburn, Danielle Greer, Bryce Charlet, and Lorie Martin.
Shown here in front of Cannon Pharmacy are (from left) Jessica Justice, Ashley Chapman, Sarah Griffin, Marianne Cannon, Bruce Cannon, UNC Health Blue Ridge President and CEO Gary Paxson, UNC Health Blue Ridge Chief Operating Officer Drew Thomas, UNC Health Blue Ridge Executive Director of the Cancer Center and Pharmacy Services Mandy Taylor, Eva Ginalski, Kailey Buchanan, and Lynne Mould. Pharmacy staff not pictured are Josh Blackburn, Danielle Greer, Bryce Charlet, and Lorie Martin.
Longtime Morganton pharmacist Bruce Cannon is retiring after 40 years, and Cannon Pharmacy is getting a new owner.
UNC Health Blue Ridge took over operation of the pharmacy, at 342 E. Parker Road, effective June 1. The pharmacy’s name will not change, and the staff will remain the same.
“I have owned and operated the independent pharmacy for 40 years,” said Cannon, who opened Cannon Pharmacy on Jan. 1, 1986. “I will be retiring in the next few months as UNC Health Blue Ridge will assume operation of the drug store. You will still see the same familiar faces you have been accustomed to, offering the same personal service.”
Hospital officials said customers should expect continuity.
“The exceptional service the public has come to expect from Cannon Pharmacy will remain the same,” said Drew Thomas, chief operating officer and senior vice president at UNC Health Blue Ridge. “The pharmacy’s local roots remain but will now be backed by hospital support.”
“Mr. Cannon has built a legacy he can be proud of,” said Mandy Taylor, executive director of the Cancer Center and Pharmacy Services. “We will continue to honor that legacy while providing the very best service to his customers.”
Cannon said he has made many friends during his 40 years as a pharmacist and has watched the profession change dramatically.
“I began typing prescription labels on my Olympic manual typewriter, numbering the prescriptions and labels with the Bates numbering machine,” he said. “A few years later, the fax machine made receiving prescriptions easier. The computer soon followed, revolutionizing the pharmacy business. Now we depend on electronic prescriptions to receive new orders and text messaging to communicate with patients.”
Cannon Pharmacy began inside Morganton Medical Center. The drug store later moved to its Parker Road location as other medical practices opened in the area, including Mountain View Pediatrics, Morganton Internal Medicine, Morganton Eye Physicians, and Burke Primary Care.
“I look forward to retirement and to seeing many of you around Burke County and maybe at the pharmacy, too,” Cannon said.
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