Celebrating 40 Years of Excellence!

1969 - 2009

History

Maynard Hine's Legacy

by his grandson William Hine Jr.

Some of William Hine Jr.'s earliest boyhood memories of his grandfather involve visits he made to the office Dr. Maynard Hine kept in the IU School of Dentistry until his death in 1996.

Maynard Hine, IUPUI's first chancellor, was a dentist by profession. His grandson has followed in his footsteps.

"I was never 'pushed' into the profession," William Hine says, but "during elementary school when my friends would say they wanted to be firefighters or race car drivers, I would always say I wanted to be a dentist."

Today William Hine Jr. is program director of general practice residency and director of hospital dentistry in the dental school's Department of Oral Surgery & Hospital Dentistry. He is also chief of dentistry at Wishard Hospital.

In the following paragraphs, he reflects on his grandfather's legacy:

Visionary, loyal friend, leader...just a few of the words over the years I've heard to describe Maynard Hine.

In fact it was stated to me many times, the first during my first year of dental school, that I had some "big shoes to fill." I never felt that.

All of these people were expressing their kind thoughts, but deep down, I always knew I could do one better. I got to call him "grandpa."

From every story I have been told and my observations growing up, my grandfather had a love for this campus and a passion for academics. He had an expression that he often would say when someone would talk about his accomplishments: "I'm only being honored because I outlived all my enemies."

That sense of humor masked the humble attitude that I was so familiar with. It was a lesson that to this day I think about and take with me whether it is my own career as a dentist in private practice, as a faculty member at the IU School of Dentistry, or in my personal life.

My grandfather's humble attitude, always giving credit to those around him, is something I remember. I believe his greatest strength was putting the best people around him, sharing his vision, collaborating, and then letting those people do their job. That is what I saw that made him successful. I am truly honored to have a member of my family be so recognized for the contributions he made to a place he loved.