For this month’s board member spotlight, we spoke with Immediate Past President of the Wilf Campus Board, Michael “Mickey” Kaufman. Having served as president of the board for two consecutive terms, Mickey has greatly contributed to the growth of our organization.
Mickey was invited to join the board in 2011, becoming the president three years later in 2015. At the time, Mickey was a corporate attorney for Johnson & Johnson – now retired after 37 years. Despite his career, Mickey found the time to dedicate himself to the Wilf Campus, making several positive changes along the way.
“One of the things that I’m most proud of accomplishing during my presidency is our ethics statement,” Mickey explained. Prior to his presidency the campus had not formed a solidified code of ethics. After he designated the mission, a committee comprised of board members and senior staff was formed to accomplish the goal. “We really formed an amazing committee with substantial help from the campus Rabbi. He connected each of our standards to a Hebrew word and Jewish value and we ended up with a very well-crafted and beautiful statement on what the Wilf Campus stands for.” The Code of Ethics, in a visually attractive rendering, can now be found hanging in various places around campus and is distributed to each new employee. Mickey explained that his further vision for the ethics statement would be an “ethics challenge” that holds our organization accountable for maintaining the established standards.
Many of the positive changes made during Mickey’s time on the board were a direct result of his drive and determination. Even when success wasn’t assured, he pushed forward with each effort to achieve set goals, often resulting in victories for the campus. Notably, Mickey was able to increase financial security for the Stein Assisted Living facility as well as move forward with the groundbreaking and ribbon cutting of the recently opened Education and Resource Center (ERC). “That was definitely one of my biggest achievements. Previously, Stein Hospice resided off-campus. The new building allowed us to integrate them into the campus as well, creating much needed space for our senior staff and a beautiful all-purpose room that finally gave us a permanent home for board meetings,” Mickey said. The ERC has also allowed the Campus to expand its health, wellness and educational programs for the community, as well as offer continuing education programs and events for professionals. “I wanted to make sure that we were constructing a high-quality building,” Mickey explained. His involvement was fundamental to the completion of the ERC. Throughout his presidency, he maintained an emphasis on keeping our campus fresh and attractive, seeking to give the organization a competitive advantage in the face of growing competition in our area.
Since completing his two terms as board president, Mickey has been enjoying life with his wife of 44 years and continues his hobbies of chess, golf, poker, traveling and reading history books. Over the course of the past two years he has written and published a series of seven children’s books titled Fox & Camel – holding a book launch for the series this past September. After sharing the books with his peers, grandchildren and the junior congregation of his synagogue; Mickey has enjoyed positive reception of the series from children and adults alike.
Regarding his experience with the Wilf Campus, Mickey had this to say, “I’ve served on several executive boards throughout my career, but I really love the Wilf Campus. The people are tremendous, and I’ve made new friends along the way. They really made it easy.” In fact, Mickey has such a high regard for the campus that he suggested Stein Assisted Living to his own in-laws, who moved here in 2017.
The Wilf Campus for Senior Living would like to thank Mickey for his contributions to the evolution of our organization.