May 4, 2026
By Dave Scheiber

John Hassell has spent much of his life immersed in the intricacies of research biology and genetic discovery. For a half century, he earned professional renown at the National Institutes of Health, the University of Pittsburgh and the University of South Florida.

But what has always sustained John is purely a matter of the heart.

His love for Florence, his partner in marriage and adventure for 49 years, was his driving force until her passing three years ago. And, in a way, it still is.

From the memory book he created with myriad photos from their travels to the warm recollections of the experiences they shared, she has remained a focus of his life. And he has ensured many others will feel their love and know her name through a gift to support the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at USF — OLLI for short. In 2024, John established the Florence Pollock Hassell Endowment with a $60,000 donation and followed that with an estate gift pledge that will grow the fund to $1 million.

It was Florence, you see, who encouraged John to join OLLI when he finally retired in 2010. Founded in 1993, OLLI is part of a national network of institutes offering low-cost classes, lectures and other learning experiences for people aged 50 and older.

“After I retired, I was just moping around the house, and Florence found an advertisement for OLLI and said to me, 'You should join this!"' he recalls. “And so I did. One of the first classes I took was how to make stories about your life."

That project turned into a memory book celebrating the couple's love story — their work together at NIH where they first met (she was a writer in the director's office across the NIH campus); their trips to the Italian wine country of Florence; Stonehenge in England; the desert of Death Valley; the futuristic Sydney Opera House in Australia and so much more.

"Florence and I had agreed we were going to leave money in our will to a handful of charities important to us," Hassell says. “At the time, OLLI wasn't one of them. But after she died, I added it to my will because of the tremendous work it does, and what it meant to us."

OLLI's programs renewed John's desire to learn. He took a class on how to discover one's ancestry through DNA — especially appealing since he'd worked extensively with DNA in his career.

"I did have some prior knowledge on the subject, but the class gave me great tips on what websites to go to and what places to put your DNA to get tested," he says. “And I found out a lot about my ancestors. My father's side are New England Yankees — the first Hassell came over in 1632 and lived on a farm near Plymouth. And my mother's side came from Poland through Ellis Island and were indentured servants in Hatfield, Massachusetts."

In time, he even began volunteering with OLLI, teaching classes on DNA, which led him to pen a self-published book on the origin and evolution of life, “The Caring Heroes From

Common Matter.” OLLI made perfect sense for John's tribute to Florence because she also enjoyed the classes, and the initial gift would come from her — proceeds from a life insurance policy she'd taken out.

He shared his idea with Kevin Chittim, chair of the OLLI Development Committee, over lunch with two OLLI benefactors.

"In the middle of lunch, John handed me a napkin and on it was written — I still have it to this day — 'In memory of Florence, $40,000 next year, and $20,000 the following year,’” Kevin recalls.

John, who held a USF chair endowed by Shriners Children's Hospital while serving as its Director of Research for nine years, structured his initial gift through an IRA — a way to reduce his tax burden. His subsequent gift is a bequest through his will.

“My role was to help educate John on the tax efficient ways to give — though I must say he’s a very good student — and also how to structure his gift at the Foundation to make sure we accomplish his goals,” says Marion Yongue, associate vice president of development. “That goal is to help secure the future of OLLI so it will provide great programming for years to come.”

John's giving is already having an unintended impact. A woman who recently lost her husband approached Chittim and shared that she'd heard John speak about how important OLLI was in helping him through the grieving process.

"She said she didn't want to just sit in her apartment and weep about her late husband, and that John's actions had inspired her to make a donation as well," Kevin says. "In addition, one of John's former colleagues and good friends is now our latest benefactor. So John's generosity has helped us in that way, too."

And it has kept the memories of a long, cherished love burning bright.