Hotel-Dieu Grace Healthcare CEO retires, replacement announced

Bill Marra and Janice Kaffer. (Courtesy Hotel-Dieu Grace Healthcare)

Windsor, Ont. -

The Hotel-Dieu Grace Healthcare Board is announcing a change in the CEO of the hospital next spring.

Following over 30 years in the healthcare field, including over seven years as president and CEO, Janice Kaffer announced Monday her plan to retire no later than March 31, 2022.

The board also announced that Bill Marra has accepted the role of president and CEO beginning no later than April 1, 2022.

“Janice is a leader who is driven by the values and mission of HDGH, by the need to ensure patients receive the best possible care and by the overwhelming focus on doing the right thing,” said board chair Brian Payne.

Kaffer said this announcement is bittersweet for her.

“I will be ever grateful to have had the opportunity to lead the team here at HDGH over the past seven years as CEO. I have grown as a person, as a leader and as a friend because of the relationships I’ve built and the work I’ve been blessed to be able to do,” said Kaffer.

Immediately following Kaffer’s notice to the board, they reviewed and deliberated the already developed CEO succession plan.

Marra has been with the organization for over 10 years.

“His commitment to HDGH, the hospital’s mission and vision, as well as the Windsor Essex community is one of Bill’s greatest strengths,” said the news release. “A true Windsorite, Bill has built his career and raised his family here in this community and he knows it well. Bill has been a vital member of the executive team for seven years and played a vital role in assisting in the COVID-19 response.”

The board said Marra’s appointment will allow the work of HDGH to continue uninterrupted.

“I feel humbled and honoured to be offered this tremendous opportunity to work with and lead an organization that I care for very deeply” said Marra. “I look forward to continuing my working relationship with Janice as we transition responsibilities over the next few months. As I reflect on my time as an employee in my teens, as a board member 20 years ago and now in the role that I have accepted, I feel absolutely blessed and I look forward to working with our entire HDGH and our partners across Windsor-Essex as we continue the legacy and mission of our founders.”