President and CEO Gayle Kvenvold to Retire from LeadingAge Minnesota After 40 Years of Service

Posted on July 1, 2021 by Libbie Chapuran

Board of Directors Begins National Search for a Successor

SAINT PAUL, MN (July 1, 2021) – LeadingAge Minnesota recently announced that Gayle Kvenvold, the association's long-time President and CEO, will retire at the end of 2021.

For 40 years, Kvenvold has led dramatic change in services and supports for Minnesota’s senior population. She spent 32 years of her 40 years at the association as the organization’s president and CEO. Under her leadership, LeadingAge Minnesota – once named Minnesota Health & Housing Alliance and then Aging Services of Minnesota – has grown into one of the largest associations addressing senior care in the nation.

"LeadingAge Minnesota’s mission and vision enhance the experience of aging in our state, and Gayle’s dedication to this work has been unwavering,” said Erin Hilligan, Chair of the LeadingAge Minnesota Board of Directors and Vice President of Operations for Ebenezer Senior Services. "Serving seniors and their families has always been Gayle’s passion, inspiring the innovation and collaboration that have defined her career. Her service spans the remarkable growth of service options for seniors, the rising demand caused by the retirement of baby boomers, and most recently, leading the battle to protect seniors from COVID-19. She has truly touched the lives of hundreds of thousands of Minnesotans and is leaving a strong foundation as Minnesota’s senior population is about to reach one million people.”

Kvenvold’s service to senior care has been recognized regionally and nationally, including her selection five times by Minnesota Physician as one of Minnesota’s 100 most influential health care leaders, and recently being named by Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal as one of Minnesota’s most admired CEOs.

The LeadingAge Minnesota Board of Directors will immediately begin a national search for her successor.

“It has been the honor of a lifetime to serve Minnesota’s seniors, their families and the mission-driven members of LeadingAge Minnesota. Our state leads the nation in helping seniors age with dignity, meaning and purpose in the places they call home,” Kvenvold noted. “I have been inspired every day of my career by the caregivers and leaders who come to this work not as a job, but as a calling.”

About LeadingAge Minnesota
LeadingAge Minnesota is a statewide membership association of 1,200 older adult service providers driven to transform and enhance the experience of aging. Together with more than 60,000 caregivers, our members provide quality services and supports to 70,000 older adults every day in senior housing, assisted living, adult day, home care and skilled nursing settings all across the state of Minnesota.