Member Spotlight

What are the Foundation’s major funding priorities and where do you fund?  

The SCAN Foundation is committed to ensuring access to home and community care and supports for older adults. We focus on optimizing and expanding supports to address what older adults say they need, especially those in underrepresented communities including older people of color, lower-income older adults, older residents of geographically underserved areas, dual eligibles and the “forgotten middle”—the many older adults lacking assets to afford housing and healthcare.  

As a California-based foundation, we pay special attention to the needs of older adults in the state, and leverage learnings from California to support advancements in other states and at the federal level.  

Our approach to grantmaking and investing reflects our commitment to creating meaningful and lasting change for older adults, with special focus on our priority populations. By integrating policy and programmatic grants with impact investing, we leverage a strategy that combines targeted initiatives with broader, mission-aligned investments.    

As new member of GIA’s Board of Directors, what are you most looking forward to in your role?

I am most looking forward to hearing more from other members about how they are working to center the lives of older adults and the communities that surround them. What are we doing differently as funders in aging during a rapidly changing and difficult time in this country for our nation’s most vulnerable populations? What are the complexities in considering the current policy environment and our ability to truly change lives? How are we sharing power with communities and ensuring that older adults and the organizations working to provide services and supports have a seat at the table when we are exploring which innovative, creative or thoughtful investments to make?  

The subcommittees that GIA provides its members, the education, and opportunity for dialogue in our changing national environment offer such a unique opportunity for all of us to engage in dialogue that matters most.

What inspired you to pursue a career in aging-related work and grantmaking?

I grew up hanging out in the South El Paso, Texas senior center where my beautiful grandmother, Angelina Ramirez Corral, was the head cook. I ran around the center while older adults played darts, held intense convos about local and national politics, took dance classes and painted while looking outside windows that showed the beauty that is a U.S./Mexico border community. You could say aging was always a part of my youth.  

During her time off from work, my grandmother began participating in sports, including track and field, darts, bowling, and pool. She later went on to compete in the Senior Olympics at the regional and state levels and was inducted into the Senior Olympic Hall of Fame in Arlington, Texas in 1990. She was a woman born in El Paso, Texas in 1922, to a Mestiza (Indian and Spanish lineage) mother and a French Spaniard father. She worked all her life and had seven children, raised six, lost one to illness at birth.  

Her kindness for others and dedication to community is what inspired me to care about aging-related work. The care and consideration never stops – she taught me that. The rest I chalk up to the path with a fork in the road. I took the path with multiple forks, and I am incredibly grateful it has led me here.

What are you currently reading or binge-watching?

Current read: BadAss Bonita, by Kim Guerra. The latest binge was With Love, Meghan - because we all need 1) to celebrate Black women every day, 2) more joy and, 3) beautiful things to see and know in our lives. I loved it.

Can you share with us what you enjoy doing most when you’re not working?

Spending time hiking, walking, running with my four dogs (Fernando, Phil, Nacho, and Domingo), enjoying good home cooked meals with my husband Jake, and being out all day in the garden.  

Get to know Peggy Maguire, President and Board Chair of Cambia Health Foundation and new Chair of the GIA Board of Directors.

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Can you tell us about Cambia Health Foundation and your role there?

Cambia Health Foundation is the corporate foundation of Cambia Health Solutions, headquartered in Portland, Oregon. We were established in 2007 as a way for the company to be more strategic in its philanthropy. Since then, we have invested over $131M to make our communities stronger and healthier, and to transform healthcare to be more person focused and economically sustainable. I am honored to serve as the president and board chair of the Cambia Health Foundation.

What are the current funding priorities and where do you fund?

For the past decade, we have invested almost $20M in interprofessional palliative care leadership development through our national Sojourns Scholar Leadership Program. We were betting that our ability to identify, cultivate and advance in the next generation of palliative care leaders would improve the care of people with serious illness, support their caregivers, and influence broader system change. Preliminary data proves our hypothesis to be correct. We are in the process of conducting a third-party evaluation of our investments in palliative care leadership and we look forward to sharing it when it is completed.  

Our current 5-year strategic plan is to expand access to behavioral health services and supports in our region (which includes the states of Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Utah) through three investment areas: Resilient Children and Families (supporting parents and children up to five years of age), Healthy & Connected Aging (supporting adults over 55 years of age), and the Healthcare Workforce. We are working to diversify, train, support and expand the behavioral health workforce to reduce provider shortages in our region.  

As the new chair of GIA’s Board of Directors, what are you most excited about?

I really enjoy the interactions I have with other board members and with the GIA Staff. It’s a very engaged, collaborative and committed community working toward an age-integrated society where everyone can thrive. I love attending the conference each year to network, learn, and find opportunities to act with other funders.  

You and Cambia Health Foundation have been recognized for championing equity in aging and contributing to the field of palliative care, most recently with the Presidential Citation Award from the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine and GIA’s John Feather Equity in Aging Philanthropy Award. What recommendations would you give to other funders seeking to elevate programs in those focus areas?

We were so honored to receive both awards from organizations we deeply respect and admire. When we made the decision to invest in palliative care, it was a relatively unknown medical specialty, and it was definitely underfunded. We believed that our investments in interprofessional teams, programs and leaders could improve the care of people with serious illness and it has. That wasn’t because we knew more than our grantees; it was because we listened to them about what they needed to advance the field.  

We have always believed that how we work is as impactful as what we fund. We look for ways to collaborate with other funders, and we listen to and learn from the communities our programs are designed to impact, adjusting as needed to meet their needs. We challenge ourselves to be uncomfortable and not shy away from difficult conversations as we commit to our own role and responsibility to create lasting change.What about GIA’s mission really motivates you?

Grantmakers In Aging is a community of funders mobilizing money and ideas to strengthen policies, programs, and resources for all of us as we age. I love being part of a community that is action-oriented, collaborative, and inclusive.  

For some fun insight, can you share with us what you enjoy doing most when you’re not working?

I love spending time with my family, friends, traveling, reading, knitting, and being outdoors. For outdoor activities, I like biking, swimming, hiking, kayaking and paddle-boarding. I have two grown daughters, one who lives in Portland and one in Los Angeles. I treasure every moment I spend with them. My husband and I have a one-year-old English Cream Golden Retriever, and we love to explore new places to hike with her in the Pacific Northwest. One of our favorite places to visit is Lopez Island in the San Juans.  

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Get to know Marcus Escobedo, Vice President, Communications and Senior Program Officer at The John A. Hartford Foundation, and a GIA Board member.

Tell us about your role – or should I say roles, plural – at The John A. Hartford Foundation (and how long have you been there?) 

As VP of Communications, I’m honored to advance our foundation’s mission of improving care for older adults by leading our communication strategy alongside a fantastic team.  

As Senior Program Officer, I manage a grants portfolio focused on communications and special projects. I've been with the organization for 18 wonderful years, and my role has changed over time. I started as a Program Assistant and later oversaw grants to enhance geriatrics competence among specialist physicians. As a generalist at heart, I have loved each role along the way.  

What are the Foundation’s major funding priorities?  

We have three overlapping priority areas, all focused on advancing age-friendly care:  

Age-Friendly Health Systems: We work to create health systems that prioritize older adults’ needs, with safe, high-quality, and evidence-based care. In addition to our signature Age-Friendly Health Systems initiative, we fund several related programs that improve health care quality and connect to public health and community-based services.  

Family Caregiving: The foundation funds initiatives that help health systems and providers better meet the needs of family caregivers, advance policies that increase caregiver support, and partner with national efforts to create large-scale impact.

Serious Illness and End-of-Life Care: We fund programs that expand access to high-quality palliative care and support communication, community solutions, and policies that meet the needs of the seriously ill and their families.

The Foundation supports some interesting communications work. What are the goals of that strategy?

We believe that effective communication is an essential and powerful tool in advancing our programmatic goals. We’ve identified three primary aims for our communications:  

First, we focus on disseminating the resources that we and our grantees produce to improve care for older adults. This led us to create a resource center on our website that aggregates tools, training opportunities, and the latest research on age-friendly care. We use our email and social media channels to get these resources into the hands of clinicians, service providers, and older adults and caregivers.  

Secondly, we work to influence decision-makers who can advance age-friendly care by positioning our expert staff as thought leaders and by forming communications partnerships with other funders and policymakers.  

Third, we try to efficiently coordinate our communications internally (so that our communications and program work is fully integrated) and externally (which means we invest a lot of time and resources working closely with our grantees on joint communications).  

We did not have a communications department when I started, so it’s been great fun building out a team and an operation. We’ve engaged in public polling and media partnerships with groups like WebMD and NBC Universal. Like GIA, we’ve also been a big supporter of the Reframing Aging initiative, which helps us communicate effectively to counter ageism and gain more support for age-friendly programs and policies.

GIA appreciates the time and energy you put in as a member of our Board of Directors – and you serve on a few other boards as well. What do you enjoy about that and what would you say to another funder who might be considering Board service?

Joining the GIA board has been one of the great joys of my life. The group is incredibly smart and passionate about creating an age-inclusive world. I learn so much from each of them. I can honestly say that I laugh more at GIA board meetings than with any other group, too!  

What are you currently reading or binge-watching?

I’m a big sci-fi and fantasy fan. I’m finishing the last book in the Mirror Visitor Quartet, a French novel series by Christelle Dabos. And I’ve been loving All About Agatha.

What’s something you enjoy doing when you’re not working?  

Sleeping!! 

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Get to know Dianne Oliver, Executive Director of the West End Home Foundation and a member of the GIA Board of Directors. 

Can you tell us about The West End Home Foundation and your role there? 

The West End Home Foundation is a private foundation located in Nashville, TN. Our mission is to enrich the lives of older adults through grantmaking, advocacy and community collaboration. Our organization was founded in 1891 as a residential home for elderly women, primarily civil war widows. The home provided care for over 500 women over the span of almost 120 years. When the home was sold in 2009, the board of directors established the foundation and preserved the home’s legacy by keeping the mission focused on older adults. I joined the foundation in 2016 as the first Executive Director. 

What are your current funding priorities and where do you fund?

As our mission implies, our focus is exclusively on aging. Within the aging space, we fund broadly across seven impact areas: advocacy, enrichment and socialization, food and nutrition, healthcare, housing, transportation, and wellness and supportive care. Our geographic service area for our annual grant program is Nashville/Davidson County and its six contiguous counties in middle Tennessee. We are currently funding 40 organizations that provide services in the seven impact areas. 

Are you working on any new initiatives within your impact areas?

We are just completing a statewide grant program entitled “Reducing Social Isolation and Increasing Access to Essential Services Through Digital Literacy and Inclusion for Older Tennesseans.” This program was funded through a special grant from the Chancery Court of Davidson County in the amount of $3.8 million to address the profound impact of the digital divide that left so many older adults behind during the pandemic. 

Thirty projects were funded across the state and recipients included public libraries, senior centers, faith-based organizations, Area Agencies on Aging and Disability, and community-based nonprofits. Nearly 6,500 older adults received services that included digital literacy classes, age-appropriate devices, internet subsidies, and technical support. A requirement of every grant was a robust focus on cyber security. Nearly every program was filled to capacity with a waiting list. The results of the program evaluations overwhelmingly demonstrated that older adults are able to become proficient users and their top two uses are accessing healthcare/health information and communicating with family and friends. As the grant period came to a close, funding for digital literacy programming became available through the Tennessee State Broadband office and we have offered matching grant funds to enable our grant partners to secure funding to sustain the programs. 

In your leadership role, you’re helping to champion aging while enriching the lives of older adults in Tennessee. What led to your commitment to aging?

My passion for aging began very early in my career. My master’s degree was in sociology with an emphasis in gerontology. My first job out of college was with a research project on mental impairment of nursing home residents. I still have vivid and very fond memories of the nursing home residents that I spent nearly 18 months with during that project. After the project was completed, I began a several decade career in the nonprofit sector, only peripherally focused on aging. In 2016, I had the opportunity to join The West End Home Foundation which allowed me to bring my passion for aging and my nonprofit experience together in a philanthropic setting. This is the most gratifying work I’ve ever done. 

What about GIA’s mission really motivates you? 

It is an honor to serve on the Grantmakers In Aging Board of Directors and to be part of a movement that values and embraces people of all ages. GIA promotes new policies, identifies innovative solutions, and leverages new resources to ensure that all people can live their best lives throughout their lifespan. This totally aligns with the mission of our foundation. As chair of GIA’s Audit Committee, I’m committed to maintaining the highest standards of stewardship of the funds entrusted to us by our members and our community partners to do this vitally important work. 

For some fun insight, can you share with us what you enjoy doing most when you’re not working?

I’m definitely a summer person. I love being outside, preferably in or near water. My husband and I spend a lot of time during the summer months at our lake house at the Lake of the Ozarks. I’m always up for a beach vacation in the winter. One of our favorite activities in Nashville is enjoying live music – you can find great talent somewhere on any given night. I’m also fortunate that our daughter, now 29, lives five minutes from us and I love being able to spend time with her.

What are you currently reading or binge-watching?

I recently finished “The Bear” and can’t wait for the next season. I love all of the characters but my absolute favorite is Jamie Lee Curtis – maybe it’s an age thing! Speaking of age, “NYAD” was one of my favorite films receiving Oscar nominations this year. What a wonderful portrayal of a 60-year-old woman pursuing her dream. 

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Get to know Josh Hodges, Chief Customer Officer at the National Council on Aging (NCOA) and a member of the GIA Board of Directors.

Can you tell us about your role at the National Council on Aging?

As the Chief Customer Officer at NCOA, I lead our programmatic team as we work to impact the lives of millions of older adults across this country. Our work is focused on the idea that everyone has the human right to Age Well and we will work to help close the gap for those who face barriers to achieving that goal.

I have been with NCOA for more than five years and previously spent nearly a decade working on aging and disability issues at the Administration for Community Living.

NCOA is one of the oldest organizations advocating for the Older Americans Act (OAA). What role can funders play in supporting the reauthorization of OAA?

Funders have a vital role to play in advocating for these issues.

Philanthropies have unique insights and knowledge of work happening across this country. By leveraging our community-based knowledge, we can discuss the depth and breadth of solutions for older adults.

Recently, GIA members had the opportunity to participate in the NCOA Hill Day, where hundreds of advocates met with their members of Congress to discuss what we are seeing on

the ground. By simply telling the stories of older adults and communities, you are able to influence the national conversation on aging in America. I would encourage everyone to review GIA’s priorities of the Older Americans Act. These priorities, developed in collaboration with Grantmakers in Health provide a great roadmap for individual funders to engage with their policymakers.

What are NCOA’s current funding priorities?

We focus our work on the health and economic security of older adults. Our programs run the gamut from supporting current struggling older adults and caregivers to preventing issues from arising in the first place.

Our core programs relate to helping low-income older adults find employment and enroll in benefits. We also work with the 10,000+ Senior Centers across the country to support them and their work within their communities.

Are you working on any new initiatives within your focus areas?

We are constantly adjusting our communications and programs to the needs of older adults. We recently launched a significant amount of content on financial scams that older adults are facing to address a growing problem. Another new edge for our work is related to the direct care workforce shortage. That project works with states to help address policy issues related to ensuring that there is a robust workforce to address home and community-based services.

What about GIA’s mission really motivates you?

GIA brings together thought leaders across aging to address some of the biggest challenges we face in our field. With the growing numbers and diverse needs of older adults, having space to discuss and align funding is vital. Funders help drive the conversation on aging and with the core values of diversity, inclusion, equity, action, collaboration, age-integration, integrity, and learning. GIA is leading those conversations.

We’re all aging personally, but how did you get involved in aging professionally?

I landed in aging by accident.

I had the opportunity to join the Administration for Community Living (then the Administration on Aging) in 2010 as we were beginning to implement the Affordable Care Act. This introduction to aging changed the course of my career.

Through the work at both ACL and now at NCOA, I have found a career that focuses on service which I am very proud of.

For some fun insight, can you share with us what you enjoy doing most when you’re not working?

I am a father of four so you will often find me on the sidelines of sporting events (where I am a long-time flag football coach) or carting kids to and from their many activities!

What are you currently reading or binge-watching?

We are rewatching Ted Lasso with one of my older sons. It’s defin

Get to know Kelly Cronin, Deputy Administrator of the Administration for Community Living (ACL) and Director of the Center for Innovation and Partnership, as well as the new Federal Liaison to the GIA Board of Directors.

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What is your role with the Administration for Community Living and the Department of Health & Human Services and how long have you been with the agencies? 

I am a Deputy Administrator of ACL and Director of the Center for Innovation and Partnership. I oversee grant programs to support Medicare beneficiaries’ access to low-income subsidies and health insurance, as well as State No Wrong Door systems that enable access to long-term services and State grants that support individuals’ access to assistive technologies. I also lead efforts to align health and social care through Community Care Hubs and networks of community-based organizations, as well as inter-agency efforts to address the direct care workforce crisis and improve access to housing and services. I’ve been with ACL for about five years and with HHS for 22 years.

What are your current funding priorities and where do you fund?

ACL funds aging and disability organizations across the country through programs under the Older Americans Act, the Rehab Act, and other authorizing laws. We also fund disability research, and technical assistance and collaborate with many other federal agencies on cross-cutting priorities such as direct care workforce, family caregiving, addressing health-related social needs, health equity, and healthy aging.

We’re all aging personally, but how did you get involved in aging professionally?

I was a caregiver to my late father who had Parkinson’s and my late aunt who had ALS. I realized that even with strong family support how challenging it can be to care for those who matter the most to us. I’ve been involved in Medicare policy for many years, but my personal experience made me want to focus more on long-term services and supports and innovative approaches to improving the lives of older adults and people with disabilities.

For some fun insight, can you share with us what are you currently reading, binge-watching, or listening to on repeat? 

I recently had COVID for the first time and had the opportunity to binge-watch “Secrets of the Blue Zones” on Netflix. It was fascinating how they looked at culture, daily habits, food intake, and purpose in life in analyzing the factors that contributed to long, healthy lives.

Can you share with us what you enjoy doing most when you’re not working?

When I’m not working, I’m trying to keep up with the rest of my life which includes my busy teenage daughters who are into crew and dance.

Get to know Tim Lash, President of West Health, Chief Executive Officer and President of Gary and Mary West PACE, and Chair of the West Health Policy Center. Tim is also a new member of the GIA Board of Directors.

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West Health serves as the umbrella for three organizations, can you tell us a bit about the mission and your role with the organizations?

West Health is a family of three nonprofit entities: The Gary and Mary West Foundation, the West Health Institute, and the West Health Policy Center. All three work together in a very coordinated fashion to achieve a central goal: Improve aging in America. Our efforts are centered around lowering healthcare costs, improving the quality and accessibility of healthcare for seniors, and ensuring our nation’s older adults can live with dignity in their homes and communities as they age.

Through West Health’s structure, we’re able to package strategic grantmaking with the extensive market expertise of our team members, which amplifies our impact across all our initiatives.

As president of West Health, my work spans all three of our entities, as well as the Gary and Mary West PACE center, an independent nonprofit in San Diego County where I serve as CEO. The West PACE center has become a gold standard of community-based care for frail older people, and we look to serve as a model for PACE programs nationwide. As you may know, “PACE” is short for Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly; it’s a program that helps seniors with chronic care needs remain in their homes and communities, with greater social connection and quality of life than they’d have in nursing homes.

What are the current funding priorities and where do you fund?

There’s an overwhelming amount of work to be done to enable successful aging for everyone in America, especially those who are low-income or middle-income. So, what do we prioritize first? At West Health, we believe successful aging simply isn’t possible without quality health care—and that quality healthcare isn’t possible without being both affordable and accessible.

Thus, a lot of the innovations and programs gaining our attention are new models of care that improve efficiency and outcomes of our healthcare system. We test new models, gather data, and share our learnings widely with the healthcare community and policymakers.

As an example, one of our current priorities is helping more hospitals implement Geriatric Emergency Departments, which provide specialized care to older adults and address many of the problems patients face during and after an ER visit. We’re also leading industrywide efforts to help telehealth providers optimize their services for older patients, who can benefit greatly from the accessibility of remote care. In addition, we fund advocacy and policy efforts to reduce the cost of care for Medicare beneficiaries and all Americans, and we partner with Gallup on large-scale public opinion polling efforts to amplify the voices of Americans on topics related to aging and healthcare.

The Gary and Mary West Foundation supports GIA's newest Funders Community on Multisector Plans for Aging (MPA). What has been the Foundation’s role in California’s MPA movement?

West Health has been involved from the very beginning in the creation and implementation of California’s Master Plan for Aging, which was nothing short of a groundbreaking public-private partnership. The plan encompasses healthcare, housing, social services, mental health, transportation, caregiving, public policy and financial security. The idea is to comprehensively address the current and future needs of our state’s increasingly diverse senior population. Now that California’s plan is successfully launched, we’re taking an active role in tracking key data and metrics that measure the plan’s impact and highlight areas for improvement. We’re making this data available through a publicly accessible dashboard.

How do you think other funders can help build momentum for the MPA movement in their states?

Our teams are energized by what we’ve helped accomplish in California, and we’re now focused on spreading this approach to other states nationwide. We firmly believe that every state can benefit from having its own multisector plan that addresses the unique needs of their senior population—as well as people with disabilities, family caregivers, and others in the community. To facilitate this, we’re bringing together expertise and guidance to help state leaders build consensus and create a plan.

While it’s true that no two plans are alike, we have found there’s great value in sharing learnings and resources. That’s why West Health, along with partner organizations, created a Multisector Plan for Aging Learning Collaborative to support state success. This collaborative gives members access to technical assistance, peer-to-peer exchanges, and a wide range of expertise to help move their plans forward. It’s just what many states need to create enough momentum to get a plan off the ground.

We’d like for you to share a bit about yourself. We’re all aging personally, but how did you get involved in aging professionally?

I find that it’s hard to separate personal from professional when you work in the healthcare field. In fact, the personal element is what brings purpose to me and many of my colleagues at West Health. Prior to joining West Health in 2013, I worked in the pharmaceutical industry—specifically with Johnson & Johnson. My passion then, as it is now, was propelling new models that fill a dire need in our healthcare sector. I’m drawn to innovations that can operate within the real market, not in a healthcare utopia. With West Health, I saw the opportunity to affect so many facets of healthcare and drive solutions that are urgently needed today, especially as our population ages. The reality is that our current healthcare system, from our emergency rooms to our remote care options, simply isn’t optimized for older people. And too many people enter old age in serious medical debt or in poor health because they couldn’t afford the right care when they needed it. At West Health, we embrace evidence-based approaches to fixing system-wide healthcare problems and improving quality of life for people as they age. I am personally invested in making sure these changes happen.

What about GIA’s mission really motivates you?

As GIA says in its mission, aging is universal. That fact alone is extremely motivating to me. At West Health, we’re advancing initiatives that can touch every member of our society in some way—it doesn’t get much more motivating than that!

But also, I’m closely aligned with GIA’s focus on creating a society that “engages” and “connects.” These elements of wellness are often overlooked, yet they must be prioritized by our society and any solutions we put forward. Just this spring, the U.S. Surgeon General released an advisory calling attention to the public health crisis of loneliness, isolation, and lack of connection in our country. Not only does this epidemic impact physical health, but mental health—and it has profound consequences for our older adult populations.

For some fun insight, can you share with us what you enjoy doing most when you’re not working?

I live in San Diego with my wife, Lauren, of 18 years, and our two daughters, Ava, 10, and Olivia, who’s 13. Because I travel so much for work, I spend every possible moment of my free time with my family, which also includes our very spoiled Goldendoodle, Lucy. About once a month, the girls and I will venture out on a camping trip together, often to our favorite spot, Joshua Tree National Park. One great thing about San Diego is that you don’t have to travel far to find amazing camping destinations. It’s a fun way to spend time together, totally unplugged and enjoy nature. We also love traveling together as a family and have been on more Disney cruises than I’d care to admit!

Get to know Jasmine Lacsamana, Program Officer with the Archstone Foundation and a member of the GIA Board of Directors and the GIA Task Force on Equity in Aging Philanthropy. 

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Can you tell us a little about Archstone Foundation, including your current funding priorities and where you fund?

Archstone Foundation’s mission is to improve the health and well-being of older Californians and their caregivers. We are a California-based funder that funds solely in aging. Our grantmaking has a focus on care coordination between healthcare and social service providers. Through our grantmaking, we are committed to ensuring that future systems of care meet the needs of historically marginalized communities, are culturally and linguistically appropriate, and assist in reducing disparities among older adults.

We base our funding on the Three Ts: Teams, Training, and Technology. Teams supports projects that advance care team models, demonstrate improved outcomes for older adults and their families, and are designed to be more cost-effective and high-quality. In Training, we support projects that train health care and social service care teams to collaborate at the highest level possible, which can include projects that advance care integration or training newer members of a care team, such as Community Health Workers/Promotores. We intend to support projects that test technology-enabled services and data exchange interventions that improve team-based care and better integrate and coordinate care in the Technology sector.

What is your role at Archstone and how long have you been there?

I’m a Program Officer and have been at the Foundation for over 7 years. I’m currently overseeing our portfolio of projects with team-based models of care. Archstone Foundation has been an active part of the GIA network for some time.

What about our mission really motivates you?

GIA and Archstone Foundation’s missions are closely aligned and an excellent way for us, as a Foundation, to amplify our grantmaking efforts, partner with other funders, and learn from other grantmakers and stakeholders in aging. I’m excited that the Foundation has supported programs such as the Impact Investing Guides and the opportunities to listen, learn, and collaborate with other funders through the Funders Communities, including Family Caregiving (Archstone sponsors) and Aging and Technology, and others. I’m also very excited to serve on GIA’s Board and on the Task Force on Equity in Aging Philanthropy.

We’re all aging personally, but how did you get involved in aging professionally?

I think most people who work in aging will say their grandparents and I’m not the exception! My maternal grandmother had a profound impact on my life. She helped raise all 10 of her grandchildren when she immigrated here from the Philippines and her experiences have shaped my professional work. My educational background is in public health, and I became more focused on working with and for the benefit of older people from my coursework and projects from when I interned at a managed Medi-Cal provider. My interest grew from there. 

For some fun insight, can you share with us what are you currently reading, binge-watching, or listening to on repeat?

I’m reading a series of “cozy mysteries” by Mia P. Manansala that mixes murder mystery with the love of Filipino food. The first book is entitled, “Arsenic and Adobo” and I’m currently reading “Homicide and Halo-Halo.”

With what character from a cartoon, book or movie do you most identify?

My kids can’t stop watching Bluey on Disney+.  Chili, the mom, is who I aspire to be as a parent because she’s so fun but also good at explaining things to her kids. 

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Can you tell us a bit about the May and Stanley Smith Charitable Trust?

May Smith started the Trust in 1989. She was born in China to a well-connected family and attended boarding school. Stanley Smith was Australian by birth and had been working as an information attaché for Britain during World War II in Southeast Asia where he met May. They both experienced hardships in their lives during the war. Following the war in 1948, Stanley became part owner of Eastern Metals and Mining Corporation (EMMCO). The company produced iron ore, tin, and aluminum, one of the largest mining companies in Southeast Asia. He owned EMMCO until 1965 and passed away in 1968. May continued living in Nassau, Bahamas until her death in 2006. The Trust reflects the Smiths’ philosophy rooted in humility in philanthropy and an understanding that “there is no substitution for kindness."

Where do you fund?

We fund in 14 Western states and British Columbia.

What are your current funding priorities?

Our current priority areas are elders, foster youth, military veterans and families (Post 9/11), and transition-age youth and young adults with disabilities.

Now let’s talk about you and your work. How long have you been with the Trust?

Almost 4 years.

Where were you before?

Heading a national LGBTQ housing initiative for elders for the SAGE organization.

We’re all aging personally, but how did you get involved in aging professionally?

I’ve been affected both personally and professionally. I was doing a great deal of work around supportive housing for Vietnam-era homeless veterans at the time for Corporation for Supportive Housing. I learned a lot about the various struggles veterans had as they aged. About the same time, my father and mother were both dealing with separate health issues, and as my sister and I assisted them in navigating the maze of bureaucracy it really struck me how those without a support system or economic resources would be at a serious disadvantage as they age. That led me to start doing coursework in gerontology in the evenings to better understand the service needs of the aging population. I have been focused on housing and health needs of this population for about 10 years.

Tell us about an older person who had an impact on you.

There have been many older adults who have had deep influences in my life and my father was one. Helping him navigate his journey with dementia and metastatic cancer taught me much about caregiving.

Tell us about a recent grant that excites you.

There is a great deal of exciting work taking place across our country. It is hard to choose one, but I would highlight the great intersectional systems change work that Caring Across Generations is doing to advocate around caregiving. I am also proud of the systems change work we fund around the serious issue of elder homelessness, which is expected to double in the next eight years in our country. It is not only a moral failing on our part, in my opinion, to allow our elders to live on the streets, but it is also a racial and economic social justice issue. Ultimately, people of color make up the largest segment of people experiencing homelessness and the largest segment of those who provide care to our loved ones. This is in part due to the way we have structured and provided access to our economy, education, and housing systems. Having grantees addressing these difficult systemic issues that are multi-faceted and deeply engrained is both necessary and a sincere privilege to help support.

Now let’s talk about us. What about GIA’s mission really motivates you?

The idea of thought partnership with my colleagues doing this work around the country excites me based on the possibilities of shared knowledge and the potential to come together to serve communities and older people more holistically. This work includes patient-centered care, long-term services and support, self-determination around aging in place, and the growing issue around elder justice and elder abuse.

What are you currently reading, binge-watching, or listening to on repeat?

I have been doing a lot of binge-watching of documentaries, mostly from the late 60s, 70s, and 80s era. The cultural inflection points during those decades so inform where we are today. I also have gone back and binged shows I already watched, like “West Wing” and “Schitts Creek.” I also enjoy stand-up comedy a great deal. With the weight of everything in the world over the past two years, I needed to carve out space to laugh more. Netflix has a large library of great standups. It would be difficult for me to choose one that is my favorite.

With what character from a cartoon, book or movie do you most identify?

That is a great question. I would say it isn’t a book or movie but rather a speech titled “Citizenship in a Republic” given by Theodore Roosevelt when he visited the Sorbonne in Paris, France in 1910. Within that speech, there is a section that has become known as “The Man in the Arena” which my father had me read as a child and it has been instrumental to me in my life.

Get to know Neel Hajra, CEO of Michigan Health Endowment Fund and member of the GIA Board of Directors.

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Tell us a bit about the Michigan Health Endowment Fund and your role there.

The Health Fund was created in 2013 and is the largest health foundation in Michigan. Our mission is to improve the health of Michigan residents, with special emphasis on the health and wellness of children and older people, while reducing the cost of health care. I’m the CEO so my main job is to create the conditions under which our institution can continually increase our positive impact on Michiganders.

What are your current funding priorities?

Our major focus areas include healthy aging, behavioral health, nutrition and healthy lifestyles, and community health. We are piloting new work in the areas of maternal/infant and foster care health.

How long have you been with the Fund?

Just over a year. Prior to that, l collaborated for years with the Health Fund’s Healthy Aging team because it was also a priority area at my previous institution, the Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation.

We understand that you made an interesting pivot in your career path. Tell us what you did before your philanthropy work and what led you to this career.

I suppose one could call it interesting, but maybe “random” is a better adjective. I have an undergraduate degree in physics (and never intended to become a physicist), and a law degree (for lack of a better idea) and started my professional life as a corporate attorney at Ford Motor Company. During a sabbatical from Ford, I worked at a nonprofit capacity-building organization and discovered a passion for applying my enterprise skills to the social sector. I ended up staying in the nonprofit sector, picked up a side hustle as a graduate course lecturer on nonprofit policy and management, and then found my way to philanthropy, where I’ve been for over a decade (alongside teaching one graduate course per year). There’s never been a dull moment, which is just how I like it.

What about GIA’s mission really motivates you?

I’ve been a GIA member through my current organization as well as my previous one. Philanthropy’s role in serving older adults has been a passion of mine for years, and I believe GIA is at the epicenter of a growing movement that views older adults not as a necessary expense, but rather as a worthy investment. I am so excited to leverage GIA both to further our mission and to be part of a bigger movement whose time has come.

For some fun insight, can you share with us what are you currently reading, binge-watching, or listening to on repeat?

I’m reading Piranesi, a science fiction book by Susanna Clarke. I love science fiction because it provides a much-needed break from reality and is usually an interesting form of social commentary. Binge-watching: Every night is “streaming date night” with my wife. We’re currently working through the latest seasons of White Lotus, The Crown, Andor, and need to catch up with Walking Dead now that it’s over (so don’t tell me what happened!). Listening on Repeat: Beyoncé’s latest (Renaissance) in the car, and Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto #2 every time I get on a plane.

With what character from a cartoon, book or movie do you most identify?

Every time there’s a stereotypical nerd in a movie, I think to myself “Yup, that was me… and still is.”