JOHN F. DERR, R.PH. SIGMA PHI EPSILON, PURDUE UNIVERSITY 1954 – 1958
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When I was a member of the Sigma Phi Epsilon National Leadership Committee and teaching at one of the Sig Ep Academy sessions, we had an exercise where each of the Brothers was asked to sum up their life in one word. Many words were expressed and then someone asked me for my word. Without thinking I answered: “Full”. It has been, and still is, a full life! Part of it is due to my Purdue Sig Ep experience and the work with Sig Ep as an alumnus. |
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After I graduated from Purdue in 1958, I first took my Pharmacy state boards in Illinois and then joined the Navy. In 1958, the draft was still in existence and a male could not get a job without first serving his military responsibility. I wanted to join the Medical Corp as an officer but was told that the Navy did not have officer pharmacists. I could attend the Naval Officer Candidate School in Newport, RI and if qualified, become an Officer of the Line. In May, 1959, I was commission as an Ensign in the Navy and qualified as an Officer and Gentleman. I reported to my first Destroyer, the USS Lofberg (DD759), in San Francisco. On the way to San Francisco I stopped in Reno and won $600 on Keno. I sent my Dad the $500 I owed him for his loan on my new Chevrolet Impala Convertible (the 1958 Impala cost $2,000). I was debt free for the first and only time. Thus began my Navy life which lasted over 30 years. I spent five years on active duty serving on the Lofberg where I was the navigator and anti-submarine officer (ASWO) and then as the ASWO on the Worlds First Destroyer Leader Frigate the USS Dewey (DLG-14). On the Lofberg, I designed a USSR submarine hold down tactic that the Navy used in the Pacific for two years.
After my five years of active duty, I served another 26 years in the active selective reserve. Of those 26 years, I had five commands including the reserve commanding officer of two WWII Destroyers stationed in New York City. I also spent many summer active duty tours working for the Department of Defense with the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs at The Pentagon. I concluded my active reserve Navy life in 1989 with the Rank of Captain and as the head of strategic planning for the southwest United States Naval Reserve. I earned many medals but my proudest is the Meritorious Service Medal, which is one of the highest non-war medals.
My family and healthcare lives started after my Naval active duty in 1964. I married a beautiful Ohio University coed in 1963 and we have two daughters. This fall we will celebrate our 45th wedding anniversary. I began my healthcare career as a Squibb Pharmaceutical Representative in Beverly Hills, CA. I became Squibb’s first management trainee in New York City in 1967 and worked my way up the marketing ladder to my final position as Director of Product Development and Strategic Planning. I started the Squibb Hospital Division and launched a number of major pharmaceutical products which were milestones in psychiatric and colon cancer care. After 10 years at Squibb during which I was nominated as an Outstanding Youngman of America, I graduated from the Indiana University Executive Course. I remained on the Advisory Board of the IU Executive Program for 20 years. My second healthcare career was with G. D. Searle where I became the head of the Imaging Division working for Donald Rumsfeld. We developed the first computerized ultrasound scanner, the first computerized tomography (CT) scanner, as well as the term Imaging that has, in many cases, replaced Radiology. We were sold to Siemens Medical where I became the VP and Division leader of the Siemens Ultrasound and Nuclear Medicine Division. After Siemens, I returned to California as the National Medical Enterprises (now Tenant Hospitals) Senior VP of International. I helped build, equip and manage hospitals around the world. Most of my time was spent in Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
I then started a number of companies where I was the CEO including a clinical chemistry company that we took public; a database direct marketing company, a Division of Japanese company Kyocera in ceramic implants; and an Australian laser company. I then became the COO of an Indianapolis pharmacy software company before starting another long term care software company in my current home of Anacortes, WA.
In 2002, I was asked to come to Washington, DC to work for the American Health Care Association (AHCA) and manage a $25M program to save Long Term Care (LTC). AHCA represents the majority of skilled nursing and assisted living facilities in the US. In 2004, when I was the Executive VP of AHCA, came the announcement of President Bush’s 2004 Executive Order to establish interconnectivity and interoperability of Healthcare information Technology (HIT). I was asked by Health and Human Services Secretary Thompson to coordinate HIT for LTC. I formed a consortium of LTC stakeholder associations with Speaker Newt Gingrich’s Center for the Transformation of Healthcare. This consortium became the LTC HIT Summit that developed the roadmap for LTC information technology and has held a summit for LTC HIT every year since 2005. During this time I became a regular speaker on LTC HIT and wrote many published articles. In 2007, I returned to Anacortes, WA and was the Executive Director of the AHCA not-for-profit foundation for LTC research called the Foundation for the Advancement of Care for the Elderly (FACE).
In 2007, I was asked by the second largest provider of LTC, Golden Living, Inc. (previously Beverly Enterprises) to be their Senior VP and Chief Information Officer. With my 150 computer engineers and multi-million dollar budget, I am now able to implement the programs I had written, advocated, and spoke about while in Washington, DC. As my final job, I intend to implement the electronic health record to all seniors that enter the Golden Community of LTC, which includes nursing homes, assisted living, therapy, home and hospice care. There are over 20 of our 350 Golden Living Centers in Indiana.
I owe a great deal of my success to my years at Purdue and as a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon. Being a Pharmacy student in the 1950’s was not easy. What now takes 6 years of study, we did in four years while taking up to 23 hours per semester. I was fortunate to be chosen as a first tenor in the Purdue Varsity Glee Club and ultimately formed the barbershop quartette called the Four Sirs. We sang many more concerts in those years than they do today including being on the Bob Hope Christmas Show from Alaska in 1956; the Ed Sullivan Show; and participating in President Eisenhower’s Inauguration. As you can imagine I had to have an environment of study at Purdue. This was accomplished at the Sigma Phi Epsilon house. There were also a number of other Sig Ep Pharmacy students. They were a great help and we all managed to graduate on time even through we had our social and fun times. My blood brother also became a Sig Ep and because of the house going on probation for drinking, we became pledge brothers together. We experienced “Hell Week” together, which was one of the most demeaning experiences of our lives. I vowed to work to eliminate this terrible tradition. How a person who states he lives by brotherly love can abuse a brother either physically or mentally is beyond me. Why I joined Sig Ep at the time, I do not remember exactly. I suppose, as a freshman living in the dorms, I wanted to be a fraternity man. The Purdue Greek system was excellent and still is today. I had Pharmacy friends that were Sig Eps and I liked what Sig Ep represented. Except for Hell Week, and other pledge demeaning events, it was an outstanding experience and led to my further involvement after graduation. My brother Ron Derr stayed on at Purdue and ultimately got his Masters and Doctorate Degrees in Rocket Engineering. There is the Derr theory on Solid Propellant Rocket Fuel. Ron is a Distinguished Alumnus from Purdue School of Mechanical Engineering and retired as a Government Service Senior Executive of Naval Research equal to a three star Admiral.
I have many fond memories of my time at the Sig Ep house. One was me bringing a tape player to the dorm for a practical joke. A week before there had been an accident at the Purdue Airport where a plane crashed. In 1956 not many people had stereo tape decks. I had a demo tape on my four-track stereo, reel-to-reel, tape deck that had a plane going from the left speaker through the right speaker. I also had very large speakers. So one late night after the accident, I brought the tape player and speakers up to the dorm. I turned the volume to max and ran the demo tape. The brothers thought a plane was coming through the dorm and there was a massive exodus. I cleared out my equipment while they ran downstairs. To this date I am not sure how many thought we were just missed by a plane. I also became one of the few Gimlet members from the house. That was also an experience as I was in the spring class and the football players were actives. We were taken behind the field house once a month and were paddled by the football players. I remember one famous player always hitting my thigh, which always hurt more than the fatty butt. We also won Homecoming with a gigantic Rube Goldberg mechanical display and the University Sing. As a pledge, I decided to show the actives my wrestling strength (I was a wrestler in high school). It was tradition at Purdue that the freshmen wore green beanies and the seniors yellow cords. We would have a fight with the seniors to get our bennies and the freshmen to paint their cords. I took on a Brother football player and used leverage to flip him. I later found out that during Hell Week the actives always had Brothers watching me to make sure I did not go berserk and hurt someone.
I always stayed up-to-date with Purdue and Sig Ep. In high school I had always been a quiet student. I was an athlete but not much of a student. I never spoke up in class or volunteered. Purdue and Sig Ep brought out my inner self. Singing as a specialty act with the Glee Club and participating with Brothers in social events helped me be successful and to strive to make a difference. I became the President of the Purdue Club of Los Angeles and then the Western Director of the Purdue Alumni Association. I have been honored by Purdue by becoming an Old Master; a Purdue Distinguished Alumnus in 2007; and was also honored by Indiana Alpha as a Distinguished Alumnus in 1995. I have served for over fifteen years on the School of Pharmacy Dean’s Advisory Board and will begin my forth, four year term, this fall. I have been a member of the Purdue President’s Council since it was formed by donating to the John Purdue Club, the School of Pharmacy, and PMO. This year my wife Polly and I have established a small scholarship with the School of Pharmacy for students in Pharmacy that also sing with the Glee Club or other PMO organizations.
Since graduating, I always donated to the Sigma Phi Epsilon Foundation. In the early 1980’s, a representative from headquarters representing Brother Clark visited me one day. I was invited to the Beverly Hilton Hotel for breakfast. I asked why me? I was told I was one of the few brothers that have always donated to the fraternity since graduating. I could not believe that there were not more brothers that paid back the fraternity for their experience as a Sig Ep. The fraternity was just forming the Governor’s program. At the same time I had just taken a company public and gave the fraternity a large number of shares, which they sold, and I became one of the first Governor’s. I also volunteered to help the fraternity in anyway they felt I could help other Brothers with their Sig Ep experience. I was asked to help form the UCLA Sig Ep Chapter. I did by being one of the first alumni board members, helped them financially to find a house, and let them use my large house in Westlake Village for parties. I became the second President of the Alumni Board. I was very proud of this new Chapter and the Brothers I worked with on the Alumni Board and the undergraduates.
At the same time, I was asked by headquarters to become a member of the National Leadership Committee. For the next ten years, I taught at the Academies (now know as Carlson) and help put together the Conclaves. I attended ten or more Conclaves before my work in Washington, DC took priority.
Over the years, being a Sig Ep has been one of my proudest fulfillments of my career and has led to my “full” life. I have been honored by my peers in healthcare with a number of awards and just recently endorsed by the major LTC healthcare associations to be a board commissioner of the healthcare information technology certification of the electronic health record. I am also doing some advisory work for the Arkansas University Sig Ep Chapter. If I were to give my Purdue Sig Ep Brothers any advice it would be to stay involved both as an undergraduate and alumnus. The 690 Waldron Sig Ep house is not just a place to live while at Purdue. It is the beginning of a lifetime experience. You will meet Brothers along the way and there will be a bond that cannot be broken. I became involved again with the fraternity when the Balanced Man Program was implemented. We were the first to understand that there is more to a fraternity than a place to live, eat, and study. I have always said that if you are involved with the fraternity while an undergraduate you will gain business experience that will be very useful in getting a job. You learn how to manage people, budget money, plan events, and raise capital. You will learn to grow an organization through the good and bad times which will put you a step ahead of other graduates. I believe in repaying those that had a part in my success and encourage you to stay with Sig Ep, Purdue, and other organizations that have shaped the “you” of today and the “you” of tomorrow. I also believe in serving your country and encourage you to be a member of the Navy. Also let your creative and sensitive sides grow. I continued to sing after my Purdue days with the Roger Wagner Chorale in LA and the chorus that backs up the orchestras at Carnegie Hall in NYC. I also published a fictional novel about pharmaceutical espionage through a division of Barnes and Nobel that is on Amazon and Barnes and Nobel websites call Devil Tree by John Frederick Derr. Participate in the arts and learn about your fellow man. Make a difference, do not just be a member of the human society, but be involved and be sensitive and understand the needs of others. Be a giver and not a taker. Always support your brothers and other loved ones.