Foley is pleased to announce that C. Frederick (Fred) Geilfuss II has been selected as the recipient of the Nonprofit Center of Milwaukee’s Fran Swigart Board Leadership Award. This prestigious award recognizes an exceptional leader of a nonprofit Board of Directors whose commitment, conscientious service, innovation and hard work embody the memorable leadership of Fran Swigart, a woman who devoted herself to the Milwaukee community through her extensive nonprofit board leadership.
Mr. Geilfuss is a member of Foley’s Health Care Industry Team and serves as co-chair of the Health Care Industry Team Transactions Work Group. His practice focuses on counseling health systems, hospitals, medical clinics and other health care providers on their general transactional and operational concerns. He has many years of experience in health care acquisitions, managed care contracting, defense of providers against government enforcement actions, finance, real estate, administrative and medical staff issues, physician recruitment, fraud and abuse matters, and other health law issues.
The dedication to civic and charitable organization leadership that Mr. Geilfuss exhibits is extraordinary. Each year, he devotes well over 350 hours of his time and effort to board leadership activities for nonprofit organizations throughout the Milwaukee area. Mr. Geilfuss’ board leadership objective is to use his skills, analytical abilities and extensive experience as a lawyer to facilitate more effective delivery of services for the organizations he supports. However, he is most recognized for his emotional commitment to and close involvement with those served by the organizations.
The foundation for Mr. Geilfuss’ community involvement activities comes from both his legal practice as well as personal experience. Much of his community service work involves leadership in organizations dedicated to helping individuals challenged by physical or mental disabilities. He currently serves as President of the Board of Directors for the Grand Avenue Club, a Milwaukee community for adults who have experienced mental illness. Mr. Geilfuss played a crucial role in creating the solid fiscal foundation by which 85 percent of the Club’s funding comes from today. He also led the effort that secured a permanent home for the Grand Avenue Club, the location of which, in the heart of the Milwaukee business community, has facilitated many additional job opportunities for members. Mr. Geilfuss and his team received first place in the housing category of the Lilly Reintegration Awards in recognition of this work, which helped hundreds of individuals living with a mental illness secure safe, affordable housing.
His unique combination of health law experience and financial acumen has also been instrumental in helping to sustain and expand endowments for organizations such as the Curative Foundation, Inc. and the Wisconsin Psychoanalytic Foundation, which support community programs for physical and mental health therapy and education. Mr. Geilfuss has been a Board member of the Curative Care Network or its Foundation for nearly two decades serving as President of both organizations. Mr. Geilfuss has also served as a Trustee of his alma mater, the University School of Milwaukee and its Endowment Trust, where Mr. Geilfuss has combined a similar level of personal involvement and leadership. During his term as President of the Board of Trustees and his tenure as a Trustee, University School undertook and successfully completed the largest capital campaign in the School’s 150 plus year history, expanding its facilities and allowing for enhanced faculty professional development and salaries and increased financial aid support.
Mr. Geilfuss’ involvement in the wider community is not limited to his current Board of Director and leadership assignments. He has previously served as a member of the Boards of the Marcus Center for Performing Arts (where he also served as Chair), Urban Day School and the Milwaukee County War Memorial, working with arts, history and education programs in ways that reflect his current Board memberships with the Gardner Foundation and the Wisconsin Historical Foundation. Mr. Geilfuss has also participated as a volunteer for the United Way of Greater Milwaukee and the United Performing Arts Fund.
His professional and personal contributions have made each of the organizational boards on which he serves stronger, thereby better enabling them to fulfill their charitable missions. Mr. Geilfuss’ extensive commitment to volunteer service, years of hard work and dedication to supporting the Milwaukee community well reflect the inspirational leadership of Fran Swigart.
We sincerely congratulate Mr. Geilfuss for being chosen as this year’s recipient of the Fran Swigart Board Leadership Award.
