Margaret L. Wolff is the new chair of the John A. Hartford Foundation Board of Trustees.Moving from strength to strength.
That is how I recently described the John A. Hartford Foundation’s shift in strategic direction from building academic capacity over the past three decades to its current focus on more directly influencing large-scale practice and policy change that improves the health of older adults and their families.
And moving from strength to strength perfectly describes how I feel about this week’s transition from Norman Volk to Margaret L. Wolff as chair of the John A. Hartford Foundation (JAHF) Board of Trustees.
One of the keys to the John A. Hartford Foundation’s success throughout its history can be attributed to the leadership and vision of the men and women who have given of their time and considerable talents to serve on the Board of Trustees. Peggy Wolff and Norm Volk are two sterling examples.
I am honored that the search committee led by Peggy chose me as the Foundation’s new president, and I look forward to working with her in her new role. Throughout the search process and my first weeks in my new role, I have been extremely impressed by Peggy’s keen insight and analytic capacity in the context of a very caring mission—improving the health of older adults.
A skilled and highly successful attorney whose practice concentrated on domestic and international mergers and acquisitions, Peggy retired last year as a partner of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, LLP. In addition to her service on the John A. Hartford Foundation Board of Trustees since 2004, Peggy has generously shared her knowledge, skills, and experiences as a member of the board of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital and the Mount Holyoke College Board of Trustees. She also serves on the board of directors of Travelers Insurance Company of Canada and The Dominion of Canada General Insurance Company.
Peggy is exceptionally knowledgeable about the John A. Hartford Foundation’s strategic plan and how it evolved, and I’m excited about working with her, the other Trustees, and our talented and dedicated staff to deepen and more fully develop the plan’s implementation.
I truly believe that if there was ever exactly the right person at the right time to serve as chair of the John A. Hartford Foundation Board of Trustees, it would be Peggy Wolff. Her passion for excellence in health care for older adults, coupled with her deep understanding of the Foundation, assures not only a smooth transition, but a future in which we help drive large-scale and lasting change in the way health care is delivered to older Americans and their families.
None of this, of course, would be possible without Norman Volk’s decades of leadership, unwavering commitment to the field of aging and health, and inspiring vision.
Norman Volk, right, and his wife Alicia endowed the annual Norman and Alicia Volk Lecture on Geriatric Nursing at New York University.I have known Norm since the mid-1980s, when I first became familiar with the John A. Hartford Foundation while working with the Harvard Division on Aging. And speaking as someone who first received funding from JAHF in 1992, I have seen for myself the incredible support, guidance, and friendship he has shown to so many of us in the field over the years.
Since joining the John A. Hartford Foundation Board of Trustees in 1979, Norm has been a steadfast advocate for better health care for older adults. He played a crucial role in the Foundation’s decision to focus its grantmaking in aging and health over the past three decades. There are simply not enough accolades to adequately convey how much Norm’s vision, compassion, and dedication have meant to the millions of older Americans who have benefited from better care thanks to the Foundation’s efforts.
During Norm’s 36 years of service on the board, including the past 13 as chair, the John A. Hartford Foundation has made grants totaling more than $561 million to improve the health of older adults. It is an enormous legacy that has helped to shape the field and support thousands of scholars, fellows, and grantees who continue to teach, serve, and work to improve the care of older people and their families.
Watch our video tribute to Norman Volk.
As important as Norm’s efforts with the John A. Hartford Foundation have been, his contributions to the field of aging and health extend well beyond the Foundation. While serving as president of Chamberlain & Steward Associates, Ltd., an asset advisory firm, since 1985, Norm has consistently made time to advance the causes to which he has dedicated himself.
He has served as a member of the Advisory Council of Stanford University’s Center on Longevity since 2009. With his wife, Alicia, he has endowed the annual Norman and Alicia Volk Lecture on Geriatric Nursing at the New York University College of Nursing, where he has been a member of the Board of Advisors since its inception in 2005. He was a Trustee at his alma mater, Valparaiso University, and is a member of the National Council at its College of Nursing. In 2005, Mr. Volk became a member of the New York State Delegation at the White House Conference on Aging at the invitation of the Governor of New York and the New York State Office for the Aging.
Even a quick glance at his many accomplishments should give you an idea of the trait I have admired most about Norm through the years: his incredible generosity of spirit.
It is a trait shared by Peggy Wolff as she assumes the chair of the Board of Trustees. Once again, we are moving from strength to strength.
I have every confidence that Peggy will lead the Foundation into a new era that finally realizes the goal so many of us share of transforming our health care system to deliver the person-centered, geriatrically expert, and coordinated care that older Americans deserve.
For more information, read the press release on our Board of Trustees transition.