St. Charles Foundation welcomes new board members
St. Charles Foundation has welcomed five new members to its board, including St. Charles Health System CEO Joe Sluka, Dr. Norwyn Newby, Evie Lerner, Connie Newport and ex-officio board member Jennifer Welander, the health system’s new CFO.
Joe Sluka is St. Charles Health System’s new president and CEO. He is a voting member of the board of directors as per St. Charles Foundation’s bylaws. Prior to coming to St. Charles, Sluka served as executive vice president and chief administrative officer of Regional Health in South Dakota. Sluka and his wife, Lynn, have two children, the youngest of whom is graduating from high school this year.
Dr. Norwyn Newby arrived in Bend in 1980 and practiced neurosurgery at St. Charles until 2002 when he retired. He has enjoyed working on the St. Charles Foundation board in the past and is happy to be back. Newby and his wife of 47 years, Barbara, have four children and one grandchild.
Evie Lerner, who moved to Bend in 2004, has formerly worked as a realtor and is now a real estate investor. Her mom, aunt, daughter and she have had surgery at St. Charles and had wonderful health care. She welcomes the opportunity to help keep it that way.
Connie Newport is a retired parks and recreation director from suburban Chicago. She moved to Bend in 2001. Newport is past chair of the Bend Parks and Recreation Foundation, a facilitator with Opportunity Knocks and is active in several community organizations.
Jennifer Welander, St. Charles Health System’s new chief financial officer, has worked for St. Charles since 2009. She first served as director of accounting before moving into the director of finance role in 2014, and then taking on the interim CFO position in January. Before working for St. Charles, Welander served as controller for Brooks Resources in Bend.
About St. Charles Foundation
As the philanthropic arm of St. Charles Health System, the Foundation works to support and improve health care in Central and Eastern Oregon. Private donations raised by the Foundation allow St. Charles to build new medical facilities, purchase state-of-the-art medical equipment, keep pace with the latest technological advances and deliver exceptional patient care in a healing environment. The Foundation does more than just raise money for bricks and mortar. The organization also raises money to support many programs that benefit low-income and uninsured patients.
