Check out this guy.
Dr. Jack B. McConnell
Age: 75
Occupation: retired
physician; health care
advocate
By Stephanie Broadbent
Photo by Steve Bisson
Helping others has been
Dr. Jack McConnell's
lifelong mission. From
developing Tylenol
tablets and directing the
development of the
tuberculosis test to
creating the program for
the first commercial MRI system, the retired doctor has led a busy life.
But his achievements didn't stop after he retired. Since then he has helped
create the Institute for Genomic Research. The institute's work on gene mapping
and sequencing helped lead to discoveries about DNA. And perhaps most
importantly for the Lowcountry, after picking up hitchhikers who had no health
care, he researched and found the same was true for more than a third of those
living on Hilton Head Island.
After wondering why no one did anything about the problem, he realized that
someone should be him. He recruited retired doctors, nurses and volunteers to
provide their services at no charge. He raised enough money to build a
state-of-the-art clinic which serves thousands of people each year at no cost.
Volunteers in Medicine opened on Hilton Head in 1994 and has been such a
success that it became a model for 41 other free clinics across the country.
Inspiration: "My father was a preacher in the hills and never made $100 a
month or not much more. There were seven children but it was a wonderful
household. My mother was a teacher and she taught me the love of learning
and the excitement of discovery. My father and my mother together taught me
the value and the joy of a deep faith in Christ. They are my inspiration. If there
were anyone outside of the family, I'd say it was when I read about Dr. Albert
Schweitzer and I think his doing what he did was an inspiration to anyone in
the health care field to go out and help those who had no access to health care."
Schweitzer, a missionary in Africa, won the Nobel Prize for Peace.
Biggest lesson learned: "A life lived for one's self ceases to be any life at all. It's
only when you live your life in service to others that you probe the depths of
your humanity."
What he plans to do next: McConnell said he will continue to assist others in
opening free clinics, including one slated to open in Savannah in 2001. He's also
writing a book about the McConnell family, using research and tape recordings
from family members about their life in the 1800s.
Quote: "May we have eyes to see those that have been rendered invisible and
excluded, open arms and hearts to reach out and include them, healing hands to
touch their lives with love and in the process, you'll heal yourself." (Mission
statement for Volunteers in Medicine).
Personal: Wife, Mary Ellen; three children. His son, Page, lives in Vermont and
played piano for rock band, Phish. McConnell joined the band on stage to sing
to sold out crowds throughout the country on numerous occasions. |
