Harry H. Wason

"This community has given me a great deal, and I feel that I must give back. In my will, I wanted to leave something to every organization I touched in my life."     – Harry H. Wason

"When considering one's success, you must consider what an individual has given back to the community," says Harry H. Wason. By his measure and many others, the 78-year-old Gloucester and Newport News resident is a success.

Harry is owner of Wason Realty Company in York County; founder of the Virginia Health Services, a $50 million company that operates six residential care homes in the region; and founder of the Virginia Living Museum in Newport News. He has served as president of the Real Estate Board and the Warwick Rotary Club and was vice chairman of the board of directors of Harbor Bank.

"This community has given me a great deal, and I feel that I must give back. In my will, I wanted to leave something to every organization I touched in my life," says the native New Englander who has lived in the Peninsula area since 1950.

Christopher Newport University is benefiting from both Harry's generosity in his will and from his leadership talent. In 1973, he was chosen as the chairman of a group of 11 community leaders selected for the Presidents Advisory Council, a group charged with setting policy for Christopher Newport College at a time when it was growing rapidly and seeking to become independent from the College of William and Mary. He went on to serve as the university's first vice rector of the Board of Visitors from 1976 to 1979.

"I thought it was a great opportunity to help start a university, and I was very honored to have been selected," Harry said.

Harry put a lot of time and effort in the board and worked to obtain land for the University, although he is reluctant to take much personal credit for the board's accomplishments, saying, "We worked as a team." But it was his willingness, as a William and Mary alumnus and community leader, to step up to serve the college that gave it much-needed validity.

"I was very proud to serve with Dr. Jim Windsor and board members when we went to Richmond to obtain funding from the General Assembly," he said.

At the 1980 commencement, Harry was awarded the Distinguished Service Medallion from the University for his "dedicated leadership" and "mature judgment." His time serving on the board gave him a greater appreciation for professors and the value of education beyond getting a degree. Today, he is amazed at the University's growth and the many changes that have taken place.

"CNU is a catalyst in so many things – business and the arts – offering the people many new and exciting opportunities," he said. "It's matured this community."

In addition to the provisions for CNU in his will, Harry has joined the Inner Circle , a group that supports the Ferguson Center for the Arts, and attends performances there.

He hopes that CNU will use his funds for a forum in which those involved in land-use issues, such as developers, builders and municipal government, can come together to talk about growth issues, which had been a challenge in his real estate career.

"The biggest problem is always communications, and I can't imagine a better place to hash out problems than at CNU," he said.

By Karen L. Gill

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