Harold Manhart

1930 - 2021

Manhart, Harold E.

MONTROSE, Colo. - Harold Eugene Manhart, M.D., died in Montrose, Colo., on Dec. 5, 2021. Harold was born Sept. 17, 1930, in Parma, Ohio.

Harold is survived by his wife, Sharon; his three children, Grant, Scott and Anne; seven grandchildren; his brother, Dr. Richard Manhart, formerly of Madison; and sister, Jeanne Lewis of Palm Desert, Calif.

Harold grew up in Bowling Green, Ohio, where he attended college at Bowling Green State University. He attended Ohio State University where he received his M.D. and returned to OSU for his specialty training in otolaryngology following his service in the U.S. Army. He was assigned to the 82 and 101 Airborne in Fort Bragg, N.C., as a flight surgeon and was always proud of and humbled by the work he did with the World War II and Korean War veterans.

Harold specialized in pediatric ENT practice in Madison, Wis., from 1963-1983. Following retirement from clinical practice, Harold became Vice President of Medical Affairs at Wisconsin Blue Cross/Blue Shield and went on to develop and apply information technology systems to healthcare services in the 1990s.

In 1966 he purchased a dairy farm in western Wisconsin with plans to turn it into a productive conservation tree farm specializing in American Walnut. Over the ensuing 55 years his effort has been rewarded with multiple recognitions, including Conservation Farm of the Year on two occasions. He was a member of the Wisconsin Woodland Owners Association, American Walnut Council and the American Chestnut Foundation.

Memorial services will be held later in the upcoming year at the farm. Any donations can be made in his name to the Wisconsin Woodland Owners Association.