Maryann Ruehrmund, CFRE, ACHE, Executive Director and Chief Development Officer of the Chester River Health Foundation, is retiring in October after nearly three decades of service to the Foundation and UM Shore Medical Center at Chestertown.
In 1994, Ruehrmund was recruited for the newly created Director of Development position for the former Kent & Queen Anne’s Hospital. She was tasked with creating a development program and raising funds to enhance patient care services through funding capital projects, new and replacement medical technology and funding employee scholarships. Her professional experience to that point had been in marketing, public relations and advertising, but she recalls that she believed that “raising funds for the hospital would be a good-for-my-soul-way to use the skills I had developed to have a positive effect on people’s lives.”
In the early 2000’s the Chester River Health System was formed, and the Foundation became incorporated. The Foundation was then tasked with fundraising activities for the hospital as well as a skilled nursing facility, home care and hospice organizations serving Kent and northern Queen Anne’s counties. She left that position in mid-2004 and established Success by Design, a consulting firm providing strategic and fundraising plans as well as public relations and marketing services for not-for-profit organizations and small for-profit businesses.
In 2009, Ruehrmund was recruited back to the Chester River Health System to assume her current position. She became a member of UM Shore Regional Health’s Senior Leadership executive team and recently was awarded the exclusive Town Watch Award by the MidShore Community Foundation, which “recognizes individuals who have demonstrated extraordinary leadership and service in the Mid-Shore community,” Currently she is a member of the Kent County Ethics Commission, recently elected as Chairperson. She became a Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) in 2004, an accomplishment about which she is most proud and maintains today.
Under Ruehrmund’s leadership, the community has donated more than $28 million to support the continued advancement of health care services, the acquisition of state-of-the-art equipment and funding of scholarships for employees at UM Shore Medical Center at Chestertown, the state’s first critical access hospital.
“On behalf of the UM Shore Regional Health family, we extend our heartfelt appreciation to Maryann for nearly three decades of service to our community,” said Ken Kozel, President and CEO. “Throughout her tenure, Maryann has been a driving force behind the Chester River Health Foundation’s success. Her passion for our mission and her exceptional ability to build strong relationships with the Foundation board and our community have made a lasting impact. Her efforts in fundraising and community engagement have not only advanced our organization but have also enriched the lives of countless individuals we have served.”