Terry Hashey, DO, MHSE

Helping Heroes Make It Home

Terry Hashey, DO, MHSE
Florida Community College, Class of 1990

Growing up in Jacksonville, Terry Hashey was a good student. But by high school, he began rebelling against what he considered to be an inflexible and unfriendly public school system. “I stayed home. My grades dropped because of my absences,” he remembers. Seldom feeling any support from his teachers, he eventually dropped out and worked part-time as a busboy. Within a few months, he realized he’d made a mistake. He wasn't the only one. “Friends told me I was a complete bum. My girlfriend’s parents didn’t approve of me.”

Hashey’s mother suggested he consider enrolling in Florida Community College’s adult studies program. Carol Hashey works at Florida Community College and had earned her own GED through the program as well as her associate degree in secretarial science.

Hashey immediately felt a connection with his instructors. “The people in adult studies do anything they can to help and motivate you,” he says. “Ellen Breen was a true inspiration. She is blessed with the ability to see people both for who they are and who they can be.”

After earning his diploma in 18 months, Hashey enrolled as a full-time student. “FCCJ gave me the opportunity to explore my options and grow as an individual. They helped me mature and helped me learn from my many mistakes.” After graduating in 1990 with his associate in arts degree, Hashey planned to earn a degree in marketing and eventually run his own business. But first, he joined the Coast Guard Reserves.

“I wanted to serve my country, have an adventure and find a way to pay for school.” he explains. “The Coast Guard did all of that and so much more. I grew as a person, participated in amazing opportunities to help people and be a part of history.”

The experience also changed his future career path. “During a drill weekend with the Coast Guard Reserve, a rescue mission went terribly bad and the victim died. Prior to our arrival, she had inhaled lethal amounts of carbon monoxide and we were unable to revive her. In hopes of better preparing myself for another medical mission, I enrolled in FCCJ’s EMT program.” Hashey was a volunteer EMT for ten years, also going through auxiliary police training at Florida Community College and volunteer firefighting training in Gainesville to expand his skills. His college plans changed. “I found that medicine was my calling.”

After earning his bachelor’s degree in biology from Jacksonville University, Hashey transferred to the University of Florida, earning his master’s in health science education while his wife, Natalie, completed veterinary medical school. While there, he continued to serve in the Coast Guard and as an EMT.

He transferred to the Texas Army National Guard when he began pursing his doctorate at the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine. When he graduated in 2003, Hashey was presented with the Leo Benavides Memorial Award as top medical student. He returned to Jacksonville and will soon complete his family medicine residency at the Mayo Clinic.

He will open his own family practice soon, but not immediately. Hashey has volunteered for deployment to the Middle East at the end of his residency. “I will be deploying as a flight surgeon with the Army Reserve to Afghanistan in July 2006. I am deeply honored to have the opportunity to serve with America’s finest men and women defending freedom and fighting terrorism,” he says.

“Although a soldier first, as a physician, my main mission is to support the soldiers by keeping them healthy, treating their injuries and making sure all of these heroes come home to their families who miss and love them.”

From high school dropout to flight surgeon? Sounds like Dr. Terry Hashey might be a little bit of a hero himself.

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