Homeopathy Papers

In loving memory: Joseph H. Lillard, Jr. — Man of the People

Mitzi Lebensorger june
Written by Mitzi Lebensorger

Mitzi Lebensorger offers a loving remembrance of Joseph H. Lillard, Jr, owner of Washington Homeopathics and board member of the National Center for Homeopathy and Homeopaths Without Borders. He passed on May 27, 2016.

Mitzi Lebensorger june 2016

Joe Lillard, owner of Washington Homeopathic Products in Berkeley Springs, WV, and longtime board member of the National Center for Homeopathy as well as Homeopaths Without Borders, passed away on May 27, 2016. He was home and in peace, surrounded by his family, on the beautiful farm that he loved, with its green, rolling hills, babbling stream, and sheep grazing in the pasture.

Joe had taken a fall from his barn’s hayloft last July with a resulting cerebral hemorrhage and had been making strides towards recovery until recently, when congestive heart failure was diagnosed. He was in hospice for the last two weeks. Excellent homeopathic prescribing gave him great comfort—as did Linda, his loving wife of 29 years, his beloved children and extended family, and the many friends who called, visited, texted, or stopped by to play music or reminisce.

Joe was a man of few words with a great sense of humor. He had many interests—antiques, sheep-raising, Christmas tree-farming, old-time music, hay-harvesting, broom-making, chair-caning, crossword puzzles, sushi, and homeopathy—to name just a few. His rustic ways belied a keen intellect, strong leadership skills, and an ability to accomplish things that others thought impossible.

With a Masters degree in public administration from American University, Joe first worked in federal personnel management in Washington, DC, eventually specializing in the Equal Employment Opportunity field—a good match for his strong sense of fairness and appreciation of each person’s individuality. In 1974, Joe led the way for a group of friends to buy 127 acres of pristine farmland 2 hours away in West Virginia and soon moved there fulltime. Joe and Linda’s farmhouse became the heart and soul of community life with its annual homegrown Independence Day parade and picnic. In the nearby town of Berkeley Springs, Joe was instrumental in saving the old Star Movie Theater and founding the Morgan Arts Council.

In the late 1970s, Joe discovered homeopathy when looking for a holistic way to help his sheep and goats. Soon, he was studying homeopathy, serving on the National Center for Homeopathy’s Board of Directors, and founding the National Center for Homeopathy’s Affiliated Study Group program—which was responsible for introducing homeopathy to countless home-prescribers and jumpstarting the careers of many professionals. When Joe and Linda’s daughter Emi was born with a rare genetic disorder and, months later, doctors gave her hours to live, Joe fought to use homeopathic remedies in the hospital, which saved her life.

When E.B. Furr, the longtime owner of Washington Homeopathic Pharmacy in Bethesda, MD, wanted to sell his family business—but only to a pharmacist—Joe persisted in his offer to buy it, finally winning over Mr. Furr and saving that gem of a pharmacy established in 1873, with all its memorabilia, beautiful wood cabinetry, antique stock bottles, and original equipment. Renaming it Washington Homeopathic Products in 1991, Joe and Linda grew the company exponentially, adding a store and museum in downtown Berkeley Springs (aptly named Homeopathy Works) and a major manufacturing facility in a local business park—producing high-quality homeopathic products and employing many in the area. In his ongoing efforts to “bring homeopathy to the people,” Joe created innovative homeopathic home-care kits that fit a large quantity of remedies into a compact, durable container, and they became instant hits. In 2007, WHP was recognized as West Virginia’s Small Business Exporter of the Year by the federal US Small Business Administration (SBA). And in 2009, Joe was honored when the SBA named him Business Person of the Year for West Virginia and invited him to the White House to receive the award and meet President Obama. Always a forward thinker, Joe transitioned the WHP manufacturing facility to solar energy in 2014 and installed a solar-charging station for cars.

Joe’s generosity and caring spirit were evident in the numerous humanitarian trips he made to countries such as Cuba, El Salvador, and Trinidad on behalf of Homeopaths Without Borders. He also quietly donated many remedies and supplies, so that those less fortunate could have access to homeopathy. In April 2016 at the annual Joint American Homeopathic Conference, Joe received the 2016 Julian Winston Service Award from the National Center for Homeopathy, which honors a person who has contributed substantially to homeopathy and the National Center for Homeopathy in a voluntary capacity.

Clearly, Joe Lillard made a lasting, positive impression on everyone he met. May his many accomplishments along with his warmth, loyalty, dedication, determination, good humor, and generous spirit continue to inspire us and light our path!

Washington Homeopathic Products will move forward as a family business, with Joe’s wife Linda and daughter and son-in-law Belle and Wais Noorzai overseeing operations. They assure us: “We will honor Joe’s memory by continuing on with the work he loved.”

A celebration of Joe’s life will take place on the evening of July 3, 2016 at his farmhouse, followed by fireworks. His family has asked that contributions in his honor be made to either:

The National Center for Homeopathy

7918 Jones Branch Drive, Suite 300

McLean, VA 22102

http://www.homeopathycenter.org/

or

Homeopaths Without Borders

20 Brookside Lane

Hebron NH  03241

Please read more about Joe here

http://www.helsleyjohnsonfh.com/fh/obituaries/obituary.cfm?o_id=3734761&fh_id=11482

and send condolences to his family via the guestbook.

Or reach them via Washington Homeopathic Products’ website http://www.homeopathyworks.com/

or Facebook page

Thank you.

About the author

Mitzi Lebensorger

Mitzi Lebensorger has been a member of the National Center of Homeopathy since 1981 and is Managing Editor of Homeopathy Today and Registrar of the NCH Summer School. She was formerly on the NCH Board of Directors, where she served as President.

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