Dr. J. Harold Harrison

Former Surgeon General, C. Everett Koop, once said, “Life affords no greater responsibility, no greater privilege, than the raising of the next generation.” Dr. J. Harold Harrison likely did not have that in mind when he graduated from the Medical College of Georgia in 1948 at the age of 22, but his loyalty, generosity and legacy have ensured that future generations of MCG students can achieve a quality medical education for years to come.

Dr. Harrison had a modest start in life. He grew up during the Great Depression on a farm near Kite, Georgia, but endeavored to become a physician. After graduating from MCG, he devoted the next 50 years to an extraordinary career in vascular surgery. He performed the first aneurysm repair in Georgia during his residency at Grady Health System in Atlanta and went on to develop the nation’s first vascular training program at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Atlanta in 1959. Dr. Harrison performed more than 7,000 operations on blocked neck arteries throughout his career and served as St. Joseph’s Chief of Surgery until his retirement in 1999.

While Dr. Harrison enjoyed a long and distinguished professional life, he never forgot his roots. After retirement, he went back to cattle farming at his home ranch in Bartow, Georgia. Those who knew him say he often cited his humble beginnings as one of the reasons he supported the medical college over the years.

“It really boils down to a basic principle of providing what input I can to develop a medical school where a gifted individual from the state, knowing no better or having no choice from a financial standpoint of attending the state medical school, can look back 20 or 30 years later and have no regrets or questions of the quality of the medical education he received,” Dr. Harrison said in a speech in 2004 about why he supported the institution.

Dr. Harrison’s pride in his beloved alma mater was so great, even in retirement, he remained heavily involved and generously donated time and money to the Medical College of Georgia, as well as serving as president for both the MCG Foundation and MCG Alumni Association.

Dr. Harrison and his wife, Sue, donated $10 million in 2012 to help build the J. Harold Harrison, M.D. Education Commons, which opened in 2015. After his passing, the estate of Dr. Harrison presented a gift to MCG in excess of $66-million to fund scholarships and faculty. It was the largest bequest in the history of the university and one of the largest ever received by a public university in Georgia.

Mrs. Harrison is dedicated to continuing his legacy and in 2016, she accepted the Jack A. Raines Humanitarian Award on behalf of her late husband. The award is given by the Medical Association of Georgia for outstanding humanitarian contributions beyond the normal practice of medicine.

Dr. Harrison’s generosity to the Medical College of Georgia ensures that the legacy he set in motion during his lifetime will endure for generations. We are honored to carry out his vision and it is in that spirit that we have named the Harrison Society to commemorate not only the Harrisons, but all our legacy donors.