Bill Text: GA SR1233 | 2009-2010 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Harsch, Dr. Henry; condolences
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-0)
Status: (Passed) 2010-03-16 - Senate Read and Adopted [SR1233 Detail]
Download: Georgia-2009-SR1233-Enrolled.html
10 LC 94
2522
Senate
Resolution 1233
By:
Senators Orrock of the 36th, Fort of the 39th, Adelman of the 42nd, Sims of the
12th and Jackson of the 2nd
A
RESOLUTION
Honoring
the life and memory of Dr. Henry Harsch; and for other purposes.
WHEREAS,
the State of Georgia mourns the loss of one of its most distinguished citizens
with the passing of Dr. Henry Harsch on October 31, 2009; and
WHEREAS,
a prominent Atlanta psychologist, Dr. Harsch worked in the field of psychology
for over 50 years, was the first to receive a doctoral degree in clinical
psychology from the University of Georgia, and was the seventh licensed
psychologist in this state; and
WHEREAS,
Dr. Harsch was born in 1921 in Norfolk, Nebraska, to a family hard hit by the
Dust Bowl and Great Depression, growing up on a farm without indoor plumbing or
electricity and attending a one-room schoolhouse; and
WHEREAS,
he served as a guardian of this nation's freedom and liberty with the United
States Navy, where he was selected for the naval officer training program and
sent to the University of Oklahoma to study engineering, making him the first in
his family to graduate from college; and
WHEREAS,
while pursuing a master's degree in engineering from the University of Southern
California, Dr. Harsch realized, as he rode in an elevator to see his advisor,
that he was more interested in the minds of the people next to him than in the
mechanics of the elevator and switched his major to psychology; and
WHEREAS,
in 1957, he moved to Decatur, Georgia, and worked at the Child Guidance Clinic
of DeKalb County, the Milledgeville State Hospital, and Georgia's juvenile
prison system before opening his own practice in 1966; and
WHEREAS,
Dr. Harsch and his clinical social worker wife, Jean Mackie Harsch, joined
forces and established An Open Space, Ltd., where they practiced together until
2006; and
WHEREAS,
active in the development of psychotherapy in Georgia, Dr. Harsch taught in the
psychology department at Georgia State University for several years, testified
before the state legislature regarding the need for insurance companies to cover
treatment by psychologists, and made weekly appearances on the WSB-TV morning
show Today in
Georgia during the late sixties;
and
WHEREAS,
Dr. Harsch was blessed with a wonderful 60 year union with his wife, Jean, and
the love of six wonderful children, Donna, Alan, John, Cecily, Douglas, and
Richard, and 14 grandchildren; and
WHEREAS,
there was nothing more important in the world to Dr. Harsch than being with his
family, and he converted a horse pasture behind the family home into a soccer
field for his children and local youth and built a small theater and climbing
wall in his basement for his grandchildren; and
WHEREAS,
he was a person of magnanimous strengths with an unimpeachable reputation for
integrity, intelligence, fairness, and kindness and, by the example he made of
his life, he made this world a better place in which to live; and
WHEREAS,
a compassionate and generous man, Dr. Harsch will long be remembered for his
love of family and friendship, and this loyal husband, father, grandfather, and
friend will be missed by all who had the great fortune of knowing
him.
NOW,
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE that the members of this body join in
honoring the life and memory of Dr. Henry Harsch and express their deepest and
most sincere regret at his passing.
BE
IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of the Senate is authorized and directed
to transmit an appropriate copy of this resolution to the family of Dr. Henry
Harsch.
