By Jack Cumming

One of the gems of the continuing care industry is the Continuing Care Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame gathers every other year to honor those who have made the most significant contributions to advancing the care concept of providing an inclusive, continuous response to the challenges of aging.

An invitation to the induction ceremony is one of the highlights that an attendee at a LeadingAge Annual Conference can receive. Becoming an inductee is one of those once-in-a-lifetime honors that people cherish. It recognizes individuals of exceptional talent who demonstrate corresponding qualities of achievement.

The Highest Honor

The selection process ensures that the inductees are truly distinguished greats who have made continuing care the valuable industry that it is. A 90-person advisory committee identifies candidates who meet the high standard exemplified by the two charter and subsequent Continuing Care Hall of Fame members. From its inception, the Hall of Fame has been generously sponsored by A. V. Powell and Associates in recognition of the firm’s support for the continuing care concept.

The earliest honorees, among them the great Lloyd Lewis, defined and demonstrated the qualities that distinguish honorees. Lloyd Lewis was the founding Executive Director of Kendal at Longwood. In brief, those qualities are Purpose, Passion, and Perseverance. Lloyd Lewis famously said, “There are three different kinds of people — those that make things happen, those who watch things happen, and those who have no idea what happened.”

2025 Inductees

Honorees have in common a commitment to action, a vision for the possible, and the talent to bring that vision into existence. The honorees for 2025 have just been announced, and they will be honored at the Sixth Continuing Care Hall of Fame induction ceremony, Sunday, November 2, 2025, in Boston, MA. They are:

  • David B. Ferguson, Former President & CEO, American Baptist Homes of the West. Ferguson was a dedicated advocate for addressing the needs of an aging population over his 36-year career in senior living. One of his notable achievements was spearheading the merger between ABHOW and be.group, which resulted in HumanGood becoming the largest nonprofit senior living provider in California and the sixth-largest in the United States. The honor will be presented posthumously.
  • Ann E. Gillespie, CEO, Collington, A Kendal Affiliate. Gillespie has shaped and strengthened the senior living sector and developed hundreds of leaders over her 36-year career in aging services. She served as the founding executive director for the Continuing Care Accreditation Commission and later created the LeadingAge Leadership Academy. As CEO of Collington, she is guiding the organization’s ongoing strategies for long-term success.
  • Jennie Chin Hansen, Former Executive Director, On Lok, Inc. An active advisor, advocate, and consultant on issues important to older Americans, including dementia and health equity, Hansen was executive director of On Lok from 1993 to 2005. On Lok pioneered the innovative concept of community-based medical and social services for frail seniors living at home and was the prototype for PACE, which was enshrined into federal law in 1997.
  • Daniel J. Hermann, President & CEO, Ziegler. A leading investment banker in the senior living industry, Hermann heads Ziegler’s Senior Living team and is a member of the firm’s board and executive committee. He has structured and led (or co-led) more than 325 CCRC/Senior Living financings exceeding $8.2 billion and was instrumental in creating the Ziegler Link•Age Funds, one of the first investment funds to focus on firms providing innovation and new technology for senior living providers.
  • The Honorable Thomas M. Jenkins, Former Judge, Superior Court of the County of San Mateo, CA. Jenkins was a co-founder of LeadingAge and LeadingAge California, a founding partner of Hanson Bridgett, LLP law firm in San Francisco, and board chairman of Sequoia Living in Northern California. Early in his career, he authored an application to obtain IRS Revenue Ruling 72-124, which remains the basis for federal tax exemptions for all CCRCs/Life Plan Communities today. The honor will be presented posthumously.
  • Daniel A. Lindh, President & CEO Emeritus, Presbyterian Homes & Services. Lindh began his 48-year career at PHS as an accountant, subsequently serving as CFO, CAO, and CEO for 28 years until his retirement in 2024. Under his leadership, PHS grew from 180 employees serving 200 older adults to 7,500 employees serving more than 27,000 through home & community-based service options and continuums of care at 61 campus locations.

The senior living industry has been blessed to have had the benefit of this outstanding group of visionary leaders.