Jerry Correa was St. Francis Healthcare CEO for 10 years

By Patrick Downes
Hawaii Catholic Herald

Jerry J. Correa, the first non-Franciscan to head St. Francis Healthcare System of Hawaii, who steered the organization through some of its roughest years to see his vision of elder care grow to fruition, died unexpectedly Oct. 27. He was 58.

He had worked for St. Francis 24 years, the last 10 of those years as president and chief executive officer.

Bishop Larry Silva called Correa “a man who was full of love and passion” who “gave himself unselfishly to the community in Hawaii.”

He is survived by his wife Mari-Jo, three sons and two grandsons.

Lihue, Kauai-born Correa got his professional start in 1984 as an intern straight out of college working in information technology for Outrigger Hotels Hawaii.

“Outrigger was a good organization, but I just wanted to do something that had more of a mission,” he said in a Hawaii Catholic Herald interview in August. “When I read the mission statement of St. Francis creating healthy communities in the spirit of Christ’s healing ministry, I said, ‘I really want to do this.’”

He joined St. Francis in 1998 and by 2001 was its chief information officer. When its two hospitals — St. Francis-Liliha and St. Francis-West — became too costly to operate, they were sold in 2007 to the physician-owned Hawaii Medical Center. Correa went “with the sale” to work for the buyers. A couple of months later, he returned to St. Francis as chief operating officer.

Eventually the hospitals were returned to St. Francis Healthcare System when Hawaii Medical Center went bankrupt, and the then-CEO of St. Francis, Sister of St. Francis of the Neumann Communities Geraldine Ching, asked Correa if he would consider succeeding her as head of the healthcare system.

He was reluctant to do so, feeling he wasn’t qualified to take on such a major mission. But he did, with Sister Geraldine’s mentorship and persistence.

St. Francis Medical Center West in Ewa was sold in 2012 to The Queen’s Health Systems. At the Liliha location, after a lot of soul searching and brainstorming, the Kupuna Village emerged.

“The concept of a one-stop shop for kupuna and caregivers is just in line with what the sisters have done in the past, pioneering, going someplace where nobody’s gone before,” Correa said.

Today the Liliha campus has a skilled nursing service, rehabilitation services, adult residential and memory care, a caregiver education program, wellness classes, and centers for dialysis, cancer, vision, audiology, labs, and imaging. It is also the home of Hawaii Pacific Neuroscience, the largest neurology group in the state for dementia, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and other neurological conditions.

“It’s not all owned by St. Francis. There are different providers,” Correa said. “And people come in and say, ‘It’s a really the right time for something like this.’”

As CEO of St. Francis, Correa also oversaw fundraising, information technology, operations, finance, construction and facility services, space and ground leases, public relations and marketing, sales, and government affairs.

He served as president of St. Francis Healthcare Enterprises, a for-profit corporate entity of St. Francis Healthcare System involved with business partnerships and joint ventures, including The Cancer Center of Hawaii.

Correa served on the boards of St. Louis School, the Healthcare Association of Hawaii, the Hawaii Catholic Conference, St. Francis Healthcare Enterprises, Our Lady of Kea‘au, and St. Francis Healthcare Foundation and sat on the Diocese of Honolulu’s Mental Health Task Force. He also recently served on the board of regents of Chaminade University of Honolulu.

“Jerry was a man of vision, who forged many partnerships, so that he could make the St. Francis Healthcare System a place of real community collaboration,” said Bishop Silva.

Correa attributed the success of St. Francis Healthcare to the influence of St. Marianne and her Sisters of St. Francis.

Quoting Franciscan Sister Davilyn Ah Chick, chair-emeritus of the St. Francis Healthcare System’s board of directors, he said, “St. Marianne’s not done yet.”

Funeral services for Jerry Correa are scheduled for Dec. 6, at Sacred Heart Church, 1701 Wilder Avenue, Honolulu. Family visitation is 8:30-9 a.m.; public visitation is 9-10 a.m.; Mass is 11 a.m.; burial at the Valley of the Temples is 1 p.m.

Healthcare system appoints Ah Ho-Mauga interim head

St. Francis Healthcare System, the state’s largest pre- and post-care provider, has named Melissa Ah Ho-Mauga interim chief executive officer. The healthcare system’s board of directors unanimously voted in favor of her appointment, following the sudden, unexpected death on Oct. 27 of Jerry Correa, president and CEO of St. Francis for the past decade.

“Melissa was a close advisor of Jerry and has the same heart of compassion, understands the importance of St. Francis Healthcare System’s mission, consistently leads with integrity, and is well respected by employees at all levels within St. Francis,” said Glenn Sueyoshi, chairman of the St. Francis Healthcare System’s board of directors, in a news release.

Ah Ho-Mauga has been with St. Francis for nearly 20 years and has been vice president of client services since 2015. She oversees the majority of St. Francis Healthcare’s services and programs, including hospice care, care coordination, adult day care, in-home bathing and personal care services, preschool, transportation, the business office, marketing, advertising and public relations, and developing new, grant-funded programs.

She had served as director of revenue management from 2007 to 2015, and as director of business services from 2004 to 2005. She holds an MBA from Chaminade University of Honolulu and a bachelor of social sciences degree with a concentration in psychology and sociology from the University of Hawaii-West Oahu.

“I appreciate the board’s vote of confidence in me. It’s still hard for me to make sense of the sudden loss of Jerry, and I accept this role as a way to honor him and continue where he left off,” Ah Ho-Mauga said.

“Jerry had a big vision for the community and made so much progress over the past 10 years. I feel a deep sense of obligation to carry on the mission of creating healthy communities,” she said. “Dedicating each day to Jerry makes it a little easier for all of us at St. Francis to carry on.”

Blessed to call him friend

By Bishop Larry Silva
Bishop of the Diocese of Honolulu

It was a great blessing to know Jerry Correa and to be able to call him my friend. He was a man who was full of love and passion, and he gave himself unselfishly to the community in Hawaii. He was the first chief executive officer of St. Francis Healthcare System of Hawaii who was not a Franciscan Sister, but he had a deep love and respect for the Sisters and all the wonderful work they had done. He loved his family — his wife Mari-Jo, three sons, daughters-in-law and two grandsons — and he loved those who were most in need.

During the recent COVID-19 pandemic, when so many kupuna were confined to their homes without human contact, he organized his staff and volunteers to reach out to them, and he personally visited many of the kupuna to bring them food, company, and Christ’s love.

Jerry was CEO at a most turbulent time for the St. Francis Healthcare System. Its mainstay was the two acute-care hospitals, which were first sold to a group of medical doctors, then returned to St. Francis when the group went bankrupt. Then the facility in Ewa was sold to the Queen’s Medical Center, becoming Queen’s West; while the Liliha campus was transformed into a “Kupuna Village,” serving the needs of the growing number of elderly in Hawaii. Jerry was a man of vision, who forged many partnerships, so that he could make the healthcare system a place of real community collaboration.

Jerry had a great devotion to St. Marianne Cope, and one of my fondest memories was a lunch I shared with him and his wife in Assisi, where we went to honor the Sisters of St. Francis in the birthplace of their patron, after the canonization of St. Marianne.

I thank God for Jerry, and I pray for the happy repose of his soul and for peace for his grieving family. I also pray that his great work will continue to bear good fruit in our community for generations to come.

Making visions happen

By Glenn Sueyoshi
Chair, St. Francis Healthcare System of Hawaii Board of Directors

Jerry Correa was one of those special people who saw a vision and inspired others to follow him in making that vision happen. Jerry’s vision was the St. Francis Kupuna Village, a campus that would bring both medical and social support services to seniors and make available post-acute services that are needed after a patient is discharged from a medical center.

He had a strong commitment to the Sisters of St. Francis and the mission of St. Francis Healthcare System of Hawaii. Jerry left us too early, however, not before making sure that the vision was realized. The Kupuna Village currently offers adult residential care, memory care, skilled nursing services, caregiver training and wellness classes, care coordination, transportation services, and is home to many other services that address post-acute and outpatient medical needs. These services coupled with hospice, bathing, food security, adult day care and intergenerational care (combining preschool and adult day care) help to fulfill the mission and continue the legacy of the Sisters.

Jerry’s ability to inspire employees, community leaders, business leaders, government organizations and providers of service was instrumental in accomplishing the Kupuna Village vision and bringing to the community much needed services. Everyone that met him knew he cared and had a big heart and they were willing to help Jerry accomplish his vision.

We will forever be grateful for Jerry’s dedication and accomplishments. Few individuals are seen as making a significant difference in people’s lives. Jerry has made a significant difference in both the community and people’s lives.

Insisting on the best

By Sister Geraldine Ching, OSF
Past-CEO of St. Francis Healthcare System of Hawaii

FEAST OF ALL SAINTS, 2022 — Life as human beings can be so difficult and challenging. Our faith tells us that we were born for the next world. During our whole lives, we prepare for that celestial light, and total well-being in heavenly comfort.

To Jerry: You have reached that point! You are enjoying all the benefits of that kingdom beyond our world! Now you can enjoy all the goodies—no more diets, no more gout. You and your dad can continue those great conversations from another dimension.

We miss you. We miss your funny jokes. We miss your insistence on certain things — especially your insistence on the BEST for your family, on the BEST for the Sisters of St. Francis of the Neumann Communities; on the BEST for your employees, colleagues, patients and clients.

We will miss your bold and herculean strength in dealing with the challenges in healthcare. Yes, you brought us through so many crises. The downfall of Hawaii Medical Centers and their two-year bankruptcy, AND the litigation of the Dr. Brown cases! Amidst all the above issues, you kept your cool, took care of your friends, family, and all of us at St. Francis. We are truly grateful for the 10 years you were our CEO.

May our merciful God grant you your well-earned reward in that special kingdom! Keep cultivating those gorgeous gardenias and unique hibiscus for all to enjoy!

May you rest in peace!