Three prominent residents join Naples Senior Center board
It takes power and passion to make a difference. The Naples Senior Center is gaining both with the addition of Jay Baker, Stephen L. Schwartz and Susan Dalton to its Board of Trustees.
“These are people who have already made a tremendous impact on our community, and we’re thrilled to know that they’re dedicating their vast talent and insight to help improve the lives of seniors,” said Dr. Jaclynn Faffer, President/CEO of the Naples Senior Center. “This board is poised to guide the center through an exciting time of growth.”
The Bakers have given more than $150 million to charity in the two decades since they moved to Naples. The signs of Baker’s philanthropy are everywhere in and around Naples, where a museum, playhouse and park are among the public venues bearing his name. Perhaps most prominent is the NCH Baker Hospital Downtown, where Baker has made a concerted effort to improve palliative care services not just for those in need of end-of-life treatment but also for people who need help managing chronic diseases. The U.S. Army veteran made his fortune shepherding Kohl’s Corp. into its position of prominence in the retail world.
Schwartz is the president of the Brookdale Foundation Group, a global nonprofit dedicated to advances in the fields of geriatrics and gerontology, and to improving the lives of seniors. Based in the greater New York City area, the Brookdale Foundation Group has recognized the Naples Senior Center as the central address for senior services and leadership in education on senior issues in Southwest Florida. Under Schwartz’s guidance, the group joined with Jay Baker and Baker’s wife, Patty, to give a $1 million challenge grant to Naples Senior Center at JFCS in 2017.
Dalton was involved with radio broadcasting for more than 35 years before moving to Naples and involving herself fully in community work. She serves on the board of the Senior Friendship Health Center, a nonprofit clinic helping low-income seniors in Naples, and on the board of the Women’s Foundation of Collier County. Dalton was a two-term trustee for the NCH Healthcare System, and she was a founding board member and past board chairman for The Garden of Hope and Courage, a healing garden on the grounds of the NCH Baker Hospital Downtown.
To learn more about the programs and services Baker, Schwartz and Dalton will be working to make possible at Naples Senior Center, visit naplesseniorcenter.org.
