(Community Matters 195) Remembering Dr. Joe Schwarz: Former State Representative Jim Haadsma

This discussion is part of a series of interviews remembering former Battle Creek mayor, lawmaker and statesman, Dr. Joe Schwarz who passed away in May, 2026. 

Former State Representative Jim Haadsma shares why Dr. Joe Schwarz became “Mr. Battle Creek” to so many people who worked with him and watched him lead. Haadsma reflects on the fights he chose, the way he mentored others, and the uncommon respect he earned across party lines. 

ABOUT COMMUNITY MATTERS
Former WBCK Morning Show host Richard Piet (2014-2017) returns to host Community Matters, an interview program focused on community leaders and newsmakers in and around Battle Creek. Community Matters is heard Saturdays, 8:00 AM Eastern on WBCK-FM (95.3) and anytime at battlecreekpodcast.com.

Community Matters is sponsored by Lakeview Ford Lincoln and produced by Livemic Communications.

Transcript

Remembering Joe Schwarz’s Battle Creek

Richard Piet 0:02

We're here now with the former representative Jim Haadsma talking about Dr. Joe Schwarz. When we say that name, Jim, what comes to mind? Mr.

Jim Haadsma 0:13

Battle Creek, Joe Schwarz Way, Central Avenue, he was a man for all seasons in relation to Battle Creek. He stood up for Battle Creek for decades and represented this community well at City Hall, in the state senate, and at the U.S. Congress. So he was a guy who, when Battle Creek needed the most ardent of advocacy, would step up and say, we're not going to allow our community to lose the federal center, or we're not going to settle with our community losing the Air National Guard. So if there was any time, in fact, relatively recently, within the last few years, there was some discussion of the VA Medical Center out in Fort Custer possibly closing. And Joe Schwarz was very eager to get involved in that fight just four or five years ago, ensuring that the place where he grew up, his father was a medical doctor at the VA Medical Center. And that's where he grew up as a young boy, was not going to become boarded up. He was the guy, when I think of Battle Creek,

Mentorship Across State And Congress

Jim Haadsma 1:25

as its most ardent ombudsman, as it were.

Richard Piet 1:29

Were there occasions where the phone rang one way or the other between the two of you and you sought one another's input?

Jim Haadsma 1:38

Yes, during my time in the State House, absolutely, in relation to an issue such as the potential VA Medical Center closure. And relatively more recently in 2023, Congressman Schwarz invited me to participate in his Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy coursework, which he continued to teach at his beloved University of Michigan. And we went over together with my former legislative staffer, and we had a great opportunity to talk about our respective experiences in my case, the state house, but in his case, he would chime in and say, and this is similar to what happened to me in the state senate, or I have some similar experience or a different experience in Congress. And we would talk about campaign and our respective experiences running for offices in that meeting. And it was great to after that stop by Metzger's German restaurant uh in Ann Arbor area and enjoy some opportunity to chat some more. Look, I'm like the rookie just called up, and Joe Schwarz is the Hall of Fame guy trying to attain his 2900th hit or something like that. And he's taking an interest in me. And that's the kind of guy he was. He was like that again as a citizen, as a leader in our community, as an odolaryngologist. He was always going to listen and he was always going to act if there were something he could do to benefit his patient, his member of the community, anyone for whom he was doing advocacy.

Richard Piet 3:29

Did he have particular thoughts on what a person in your position as a state rep could do for Battle Creek? I mean, specifically, did he say, you know, we really

Bipartisan Backing And Career Balance

Richard Piet 3:40

need this or that? We certainly know he had opinions about things and he was plainspoken about them. I I have that experience too, having interviewed him a few times. Did he say, hey, Jim, you know, we really could use this or that?

Jim Haadsma 3:55

Well, again, what I vividly recall is uh what he wanted to ensure didn't happen in relation to the VA Medical Center. That was while I was in office and what we could do to ensure that that didn't happen. There were efforts made, the closure never really got off the ground, so there was that. He also would help me in relation to some campaign issues. Now keep in mind, Joe Schwarz is a Republican, I'm a Democrat, but he supported me and he was helpful in terms of giving endorsements to me in relation to the campaign. And he would help me when there was a suggestion that maybe a state representative shouldn't perform at the same time in a professional role in a law firm. And he was very declarative that that was not fair because he continued to perform totalaryngology in his profession of medicine throughout his time in not just the state

A One Of A Kind Public Servant

Jim Haadsma 5:00

legislature, but also in Congress. I will miss him coming to Battle Creek as I did in the early 1990s. He was a lion in our community. He was someone who, as I've indicated, was bold about his boosterism in relation to Battle Creek. And I dare say we won't have another man for all seasons, a military man, a CIA official, a state senator and congressperson, an odal aryncologist accomplished in that field, a lecturer at the University of Michigan in my lifetime in relation to Battle Creek. He was a one-of-a-kind, and I'm saddened for our community that we won't have Joe Schwarz's sage advice to all see council people, state legislators, U.S. Congresspeople, state, and federal senators going forward. It was remarkable to see among those at the funeral or at the funeral home visitation members from both parties and candidates for state senate, governors from both parties, and former congresspeople and present congresspeople. It was really a remarkable showing of

Final Thoughts And Farewell

Jim Haadsma 6:20

respect for a giant from our community, from our state, and from our country.

Richard Piet 6:25

And that's where we'll leave it.

Speaker 1 6:27

Jim Haadsma, thank you for the thoughts. You're welcome.

Richard Piet 6:30

Thank you, Richard.