Our People: Harry Meshel, Senator and Lobbyist for the Heritage College
“The rest of the state still needs you”
It could be fairly said that the Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine would not exist without Harry Meshel, an Ohio state senator from 1971-93. The Youngstown Democrat forged a coalition of lawmakers, physicians and academics to lobby for and pass the legislation that chartered and funded the college in 1975.
Osteopathic connection: “I had always had an affection for the osteopathic process. My late wife had a D.O. who was a good friend of hers. Both of our kids were born to her.”
A college’s difficult birth: “Everybody was against us except [the Ohio Osteopathic Association]. My tradition in life is, when people start objecting, you fight harder. You teach them to respect you and understand you. That’s what you have to do with legislation. We began working, we drew allies in, got the speaker of the house interested, and got people in the senate interested.”
Motivation: In addition to his belief in osteopathic medicine, Meshel saw the college’s potential to transform health care in southeast Ohio. “I was on a social mission. There was virtually nothing else down in that corner of the state.”
A sweet victory: “Politics is usually a long line of headaches – people making you crazy, you never get to close any doors. It’s like a doctor: Sometimes you can’t solve the problem. But when you’re able to close a few doors, when you get to solve the problem, that’s satisfaction. [Helping establish the college] has been a wonderful experience for me.”
Point of pride: “That the doctors coming out of Ohio University stay here. They stay in the state. The school has just gone great guns. It’s one of the most pleasant surprises, how fast OU grew and how well they did. I was very happy and proud to be a part of it.”
Parting thought: “Don’t stop! You’ve just begun to build. You’re so successful. It’s like sports: Just because you’ve won a few games doesn’t mean you get to quit. The rest of the state still needs you. Kick the pants off the competition!”