Reid Hospital Governing Board
Health care services index community health
Paul Lingle
Reid walks the talk
Paul Lingle's association with Reid Hospital spans nearly 25 years, and he believes he knows where the success of the hospital lies.
"I think the hospital, top to bottom, walks the talk." To do that, he said, all Reid team members have assimilated the mission and applied it, detail by detail, to the overall functions of the hospital. "The success of Reid has been that the people associated with delivery of services always focus on the mission."
Lingle noted that Wayne and surrounding counties are "so fortunate to have the quality of care" provided at Reid "at an affordable price."
His association with Reid Hospital began nearly 25 years ago. A member of the Foundation board, he served as its president in 1981-85. Lingle is in his 14th year on the governing board, holding the office of treasurer. He also rejoined the Reid Foundation board in 1996.
Lingle's comments that health care, economic development and education are vital to a community go a step further when focused on Reid Hospital.
"Quite frankly, the one we do best in this community is health care services."
Health care services, economic development and educational resources are
the three key elements of a thriving community, said Paul Lingle,
Reid Hospital Health Care Services Governing Board member.
"The delivery of these services is paramount to the quality of life in a community.
"I believe if you have quality in those three important elements and mechanisms in place to deliver these services, everything else falls into place. You won't have to worry about attracting people to your community." Lingle said.
Involved in all three, Lingle's strongest ties have been to the business community and health care. As president of Lingle Real Estate, Inc., he has received numerous civic awards. Reflecting on his 1996 Business Hall of Fame induction, he said: "The night I was honored, Ralph Teeter, founder of Perfect Circle/Dana Corp. was honored. To be in that same league was humbling." He also received the city of Richmond's Community Service Award in 1995, and in 1991 was named Distinguished Citizen by the Indiana Association of Realtors. "One person in the state of Indiana is selected for that honor each year, and it is always gratifying to be recognized by your peers," he said.
Lingle was nine years old when his family moved to Richmond. He graduated from Richmond High School in 1959 but attended college and entered the business world outside of Indiana.
He completed his bachelor's degree in business at Wittenberg University, a small Lutheran liberal arts school in Springfield, Ohio. He went to the University of West Virginia, to earn a master's degree in industrial relations. That, he said, "was a lot of hard work," but his efforts in writing a thesis on "Measurement of Supervisory Attitude," have proven invaluable, he said. Upon graduation in the mid-1960s, Lingle accepted a job in Cleveland. After he had worked in personnel for 17 months, the company asked him to "rotate" into market research. He turned it down, telling his boss he wanted to be a labor negotiator. His boss told him: "You're too young to decide what you want to do for the rest of your life," and insisted that he complete the rotation in market research. And there he stayed for 4 years. One of his assignments was a study for McDonald's restaurants on whether they should install drive-up windows. As one part of the study, Lingle put together a task force that conducted 1,500 interviews. The study determined window service indeed was what the public wanted. From that research, Cleveland McDonald's served as test sites for the restaurant chain's drive-through facilities.
Lingle returned to Richmond in 1969 and began work in his father's real estate business. Lingle had his first start in that profession as "at one time the youngest broker in the state of Indiana" when at age 19 he spent a summer going door-to-door asking people if they wanted to sell their homes. He helped his father "grow the business" to 10 offices in east central Indiana.
He bought the Richmond portion of the business from his father in 1979 (his brother Bill, bought the New Castle area), and since has seen the profession change as much as banking.
Even services that were not available five years ago, such as mortgage
information and Internet tours of homes are now expected, Lingle said.
"Customers and agents demand high-level services, and if you don't
offer them, you won't be in business."
Besides his community endeavors, Lingle, enjoys time with his wife, Pat, his two daughters and three granddaughters.
