In Fond Remembrance of William (Hank) Hankins, India III

William Lee Hankins passed away on February 7, 2016 at age 82 in his home in Baltimore, Maryland.Hank was born on May 24, 1933 in Shreveport, LA. He grew up in Houston, TX and considered himself a Texan. He was a proud alumnus of Jack Yates High School. He was drafted into the U.S. Army, trained as a radio operator and stationed in Germany. Hank attended Texas Southern University, a school for which he, as a child, had bought bricks to help build. Hank pledged the Beta Upsilon Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. at Texas Southern, serving as Polemarch in 1959. He later was an active member of the fraternity's Baltimore Alumni Chapter. Hank joined the Peace Corps and served in India from 1963 to 1965. Hank married his fellow volunteer Connie Sherman. After returning to the States, Hank received a one-year fellowship to work for fair housing at Baltimore Neighborhoods Inc. That one-year commitment to Baltimore became a lifetime. Hank became the director of Sinai Hospital's Druid Comprehensive Pediatric Clinic on North Avenue. The clinic later came under the auspices of Provident Hospital. During this time, Hank commuted to get a master's in health care administration from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, and became an administrator at Provident. His longest tenure was at Bon Secours Hospital where amongst other duties, he oversaw the building of a kidney dialysis center, the Washington Village Medical Center and facilities for Total Health Care to better serve the health needs of West Baltimore. He retired from Liberty Medical Center (formerly Provident) in 1995. Hank is survived by his wife of 51 years, Connie, of Baltimore, and by his children, Frank and Laura, and his grandchildren, Margaret and Ella, all of Washington, D.C.Hank was actively planning a Juneteenth celebration shortly before he passed. To honor those plans, the family will host a celebration of Hank's life on Saturday, June 18th at the house. 

Published in Baltimore Sun on Feb. 10, 2016