New Adena Health Foundation president aims to strengthen community partnerships and philanthropy

CHILLICOTHE, OH (February 17, 2025) – Laura Jo Hawk, the new president of the Adena Health Foundation, wants to know what’s important to you when it comes to the health of our community.

Then, she wants to partner to help meet those needs.

“It’s about building relationships and getting people involved,” Hawk, who started her new role this month, said. “We want donors and those involved with the foundation to understand what the health system’s priorities are, get excited and want to be a part of something that’s bigger than all of us.”

The Adena Health Foundation provides financial support for community organizations and activities, supplements health system projects to expand access and enhance patient care, offers annual scholarships for area students considering careers in health care, and supplies other support for those in need. It is able to do all that through the generous support of those in the community, partner organizations, and the health system’s medical staff and employees.

Hawk has spent her career coordinating philanthropic giving for organizations across the state. She has successfully done that by connecting the interests of donors to what is needed to advance care in the community.

“Philanthropy is integral to the human experience and Adena’s mission of hope and healing is deserving of philanthropic support,” Hawk said. “Giving is very, very local, and people want to have a say in how their money is used. The foundation will work to align donors’ passions and interests with the priorities of the health system and the community.”

It’s an approach that worked well for Hawk throughout her career when she helped raise more than $13 million for a hospital construction project in northeast Ohio, organized a gala event that brought in about $450,000 annually, worked as a director of annual giving raising about $4 million each year through direct mail campaigns and special events, and launched a planned giving program to encourage giving through gifts of bequests, life income trusts, life insurance policies, and other types of assets.

Having grown up in the Akron area, Hawk understands the importance of a successful hospital to the residents of a local community. Her experiences with Akron General Hospital – from her own birth and the birth of her son to the treatment her father received following a heart attack – helped fuel her desire to work with that hospital’s foundation. It’s that shared experience with those who rely on the health system for care that she brings to her new position with the Adena Health Foundation.

It’s also why she’s so committed to getting members of the community involved in the foundation’s work.

“We want doers, donors, and door openers,” Hawk said. “If you want to volunteer, come see what we’re all about. If you want to be a donor, everyone can be a philanthropist, it doesn’t matter what amount you give because it all helps fulfill our mission. We also need door openers, meaning who in your circle of influence do we need to know, do we need to talk to? Who needs to know about us who might not know?”

Hawk is also committed to making sure those who become involved with the foundation understand how much their involvement is appreciated as those relationships grow.

“We want to celebrate our donors because they help make the important work being done by our caregivers even more impactful,” Hawk said.

Following an extensive search, Hawk was selected to succeed director Robin Berno as the head of the Adena Health Foundation. Berno had planned to retire this month after 33 years at Adena, the last five of which were spent with the foundation. She has agreed to continue her involvement with the foundation, however, and will transition into a new, part-time role as a philanthropy officer.

“I am delighted that Robin will continue in this role to help build and deepen relationships with current and prospective donors and funders,” Hawk said. “As the new president, I will rely upon Robin’s institutional and community knowledge.”

Besides direct donations, there are several other ways to assist in the work of the Adena Health Foundation that may offer donors significant tax incentives, such as through a will, insurance policy, appreciated stock, or directing gifts of an individual’s required minimum distribution from their IRA.

To become part of the important work being done by the Adena Health Foundation, visit Adena.org/foundation or call 740-779-7528.