Dr. Terry A. Gordon

(22 June 2015) Dr. Terry A. Gordon graduated from Emory University with a degree in Psychology. Having completed his medical school training at Kansas City University of Medicine and Bioscience, his internal Medicine training at Akron General Medical Center, he then completed his Invasive Cardiology Fellowship at The Cleveland Clinic Foundation, becoming board certified in both Internal Medicine, as well as in Cardiovascular Diseases. One of his missions in life has been saving the lives of our most precious resource, our children. After the tragic death of Josh Miller, a 15 year old football player at Barberton High School, Dr. Gordon, as then president of the Summit County Ohio American Heart Association helped to raise the funds to place automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in every junior and high school in his community. His community became the first county of its size in the nation to do so. For his efforts, the American Heart Association named him the National Physician of the Year 2002. Through God's direction, Terry continued on his life's purposeful path. In 2005, he was instrumental in procuring from the state of Ohio, $2.5 million. With a partnership with the American Heart Association and Akron General Medical Center, over 2262 AEDs were placed in schools throughout the state of Ohio. He then convinced the state legislature to allocate an additional $2.5 million needed to complete the task of placing over 4,574 devices in Ohio schools. This initiative included the cost of the AED, training five individuals in each school in the use of AEDs and CPR, as well as aligning the schools with their local paramedic units. Over 15,000 individuals received this training. AEDs were placed in public, private, parochial, charter and vocational schools, K through 12. At least fifteen lives have been saved as a direct result of this initiative. His mission is not quite complete. He spearheaded a national campaign, which resulted in legislation put forth by U.S. Congresswoman Betty Sutton to recreate the Ohio School AED initiative on a national scale, the goal, to place one AED in every single school in our country. The bill is called The Josh Miller HEARTS Act. It passed the U.S. House of Representatives twice, awaiting passage in the U.S. Senate. Terry is quite active within his Akron Ohio community, serving on various volunteer boards. He was a founding member of Stewart's Caring Place, a facility of wellness for those with cancer, as well as a place for their loved ones to gain peace despite their sadness. He was a member of The Youth Motivational Task Force for many years, inspiring Akron's inner city youth to aspire for greatness, encouraging them to manifest whatever it is they desire in life. He was also co-host of 'Docs Who Rock' a fundraising event for the United Way of Summit County. He serves on the American Heart Association board as well. Terry's mantra in life is to give himself away every day, and he does so without regret. His love of family is the foundation of his being. His motto of chivalry is "to serve all, but to love only one". His wife of 33 years, Angela is that one love. She continues to be the spiritual guiding light that illuminates his life on this earth. His four children, Mattie-Rose, Laila, Britt and Tyler have made him the proudest a father could be. As a physician who on a daily basis dealt with life and death, Terry understands that life is precious and can change in an instant. It did for him and his family when his son, Tyler sustained a severe spinal cord injury in an automobile accident that left him quadriplegic. Leading his family through the abyss, Terry's journey has resulted in a spiritual awakening to a clearer understanding of life and Truth. He has learned that when adversity comes, it is how we respond to that difficulty that determines who we become. Life experiences become calamities only if we make the conscious decision to make tragedies out of them. Rather than lamenting so-called adversities, we can choose to be grateful for them. We can embrace them and accept them as gifts from the Divine. They can provide fertile soil for growth and enlightenment. Now retired from the practice of Cardiology, Terry's dharma and purpose is to continue serving by sharing with others his pathway to what we all desire...Peace, Shalom, and Salaam. This internationally bestselling author's new book, No Storm Lasts Forever, Transforming Suffering into Insight with a foreword written by Dr. Wayne Dyer was released by Hay House publishing.