--- title: Lessons Learned image: https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/hubfs/CC%20Magazine/100%20Stories/Lessons%20Learned/LessonsLearned-Social.jpg --- [![Cleveland Clinic Magazine - Giving Does Good](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/hs-fs/hubfs/CC%20Magazine/100%20Stories/100%20Stories%20-%20Homepage/CC_Magazine_BlackLogo-Mobile.png?noresize&width=224&height=38&name=CC_Magazine_BlackLogo-Mobile.png) ![Cleveland Clinic Magazine - Giving Does Good](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/hs-fs/hubfs/CC%20Magazine/100%20Stories/100%20Stories%20-%20Homepage/CC_Magazine_BlackLogo-Desktop-2.png?noresize&width=552&height=65&name=CC_Magazine_BlackLogo-Desktop-2.png)](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories?hsLang=en) [Donate](https://give.ccf.org/CCMAG) # Lessons Learned By Rick Holmes ## Share - [Share on facebook](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories/lessons-learned&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook) - [Share on twitter](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?original_referer=https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories/lessons-learned&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&url=https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories/lessons-learned&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&source=tweetbutton&text=) - [Share on linkedin](http://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories/lessons-learned&utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkedin) - [Share on email](mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20Lessons%20Learned%20&body=Check%20out%20https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories/lessons-learned&utm_medium=social&utm_source=email) I was born with a congenital heart defect. Growing up in Detroit in the 1950s, I didn't have a lot of energy. I’d go down to the playground to play ball with my buddies, and if I ran a bit, I’d turn blue and fall over.  When I was around 6 years old, I had a heart catheterization. My doctor went to Cleveland Clinic to learn the proper technique, then he came back and performed it on me.  Three years later, when I was 9, I had surgery to repair a severely constricted aorta and a defective heart valve. Again, the surgeons in Detroit had come to Cleveland Clinic to learn how to do it. I spent an entire summer recovering.  Afterward, I was restricted from playing sports, so I had to turn my attention somewhere else. For me, that was studying. I became a lifelong learner, which has served me well in my career. The circumstances really put me in that position.  Almost 20 years ago, I relocated to Cleveland, and I became a Cleveland Clinic patient myself. I saw a display there of historical photos of Cleveland Clinic cardiologists, and it made me reflect on the major impact that Cleveland Clinic had, even from a distance, on my life when I was a child.    *Rick Holmes, now retired, launched his career as an automotive design engineer at General Motors. He went on to become an engineering executive for Fortune 500 firms, an operations executive for major automotive manufacturers and suppliers, and president and CEO of a specialty steel manufacturing company.* ![Rick Holmes sitting at a table with this arms crossed and smiling at the camera. Behind him is the Cuyahoga River with a bridge and a boat in the water](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/hs-fs/hubfs/CC%20Magazine/100%20Stories/Lessons%20Learned/LessonsLearned-Half.jpg?width=950&height=950&name=LessonsLearned-Half.jpg) *Photo: Courtesy of Rick Holmes* ## Keep Reading Explore more moments from authors Shuffle Stories ## Fall 2021 Issue A Landmark Study Seeks Cures for Neurological Diseases...Vision First Van Rolls On...The Birthplace of Cleveland Clinic...Medical Scribes Make a Difference ### [![Digital artwork of an orange head and multi-colored circles and lines](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/hs-fs/hubfs/CC%20Magazine/100%20Stories/MiniMag-Thumbnail.jpg?width=610&height=316&name=MiniMag-Thumbnail.jpg) Brain Gain](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-fall?hsLang=en) - [Story Collection](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories?hsLang=en) - [Archive](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/archive?hsLang=en) - [Contact](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories/contact?hsLang=en) - [Subscribe](https://donate.clevelandclinic.org/sign-up?hsLang=en) [Donate](https://give.ccf.org/CCMAG) [![Cleveland Clinic](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/hs-fs/hubfs/CC%20Magazine%20Template%20Assets/img/logo-cc.png?width=300&name=logo-cc.png "Cleveland Clinic")](https://my.clevelandclinic.org/) © 2026 Cleveland Clinic. All rights reserved. - [Story Collection](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories?hsLang=en) - [Authors](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories/authors?hsLang=en) - [Archive](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/archive?hsLang=en) - [Contact](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-100-stories/contact?hsLang=en) - [Subscribe](https://donate.clevelandclinic.org/sign-up?hsLang=en) [Donate](https://give.ccf.org/CCMAG) ## Featured ### [![Thumb](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/hs-fs/hubfs/CC%20Magazine/Mini%20Magazine/Thumb.jpg?width=242&height=290&name=Thumb.jpg) Fall 2021 A Landmark Study Seeks Cures for Neurological Diseases...Vision First Van Rolls On...The Birthplace of Cleveland Clinic...Medical Scribes Make a Difference.](https://magazine.clevelandclinic.org/2021-fall?hsLang=en)