Jill Wilson, president and CEO of Otterbein SeniorLife, has been selected to receive the 2026 LeadingAge Award of Honor, given each year to a member whose leadership, vision, and thoughtful contributions have made a significant impact on the field of aging services, not only through the role they serve in their own organization, but beyond that. 

Wilson will receive the 2026 Award of Honor Tuesday, October 27, 2026 during the LeadingAge Annual Meeting in Philadelphia, PA, Oct. 25-28. 

Wilson’s career in aging services began as a CPA and consultant to senior living organizations. Eager to climb the corporate ladder to partnership within her firm, she enrolled in her state’s nursing home administrator in training (AIT) program. Her goal was to become a better consultant to her clients, but more important at the time, to add the credential of LNHA behind her CPA. That’s when everything changed. She walked through the doors of Otterbein Pemberville as an ambitious accountant starting a nine-month internship program. She walked out, as she describes it, “like the Grinch,” with a heart expanded in unexpected ways. She came to realize then that Otterbein’s mission would become an expression of her faith journey and calling to serve seniors. 

“It was a defining moment for me, personally and professionally,” said Wilson. As part of the AIT internship, she wasn’t just part of the accounting department, but worked across the organization in all areas such as housekeeping, maintenance and nursing.  

“People who work in this environment are, by design, nurturers. They are caregivers, not just for the older folks and their families, but for each other. They are kind, committed, caring and compassionate,” she said, adding she developed deep feelings not only for residents, but for the staff as well.

Wilson also uncovered some profound truths about what she says “effective leadership could and should be.” Part of her task was to shore up the financial status of the residence and it was by collaborating with the department heads and their staff—“the ones with the answers”—that she learned “if you respect people enough to do the work every single day, if you ask them, encourage them, empower them, they will rise to the occasion every time.” With their combined efforts, a $2 million deficit was turned around during Wilson’s internship stint, resulting in a $500,000 surplus.

Lessons from that experience led to full-time employment at Otterbein SeniorLife. Wilson was named president and CEO in 2009, after serving in several key positions including chief financial officer and executive vice president, and she began to develop her own personal leadership style: creating “a productive struggle” which in turn leads to valuable intensity and focus. 

“The productive struggle pushes us to be clearer about what we believe is possible, and more disciplined about how we will achieve it,” she said. “For me, that has never meant having all the answers. Quite the opposite. I believe my leadership is about unlocking the extraordinary talent and power within that talent that surrounds me.”

She admits, “I have never, ever allowed myself or Otterbein SeniorLife to become comfortable. There is always another question: What could we do better? Who else could we serve? What are we capable of becoming? At Otterbein SeniorLife, this tension is real and extremely healthy.” 

Jason Miller, executive vice president at Otterbein SeniorLife, who has worked with Wilson for 18 years, confirms this. “In our organization, Jill gives all credit to the team,” he said. “She’s always asking [those around her] the right questions that help bring clarity into a complex situation.” 

During Wilson’s time at Otterbein SeniorLife, the organization has grown from the 33rd largest nonprofit senior living system in the country to the 14th. The organization has expanded through affiliations, acquisitions, campus developments, de novo ventures, and strategic joint ventures, growing into a multi-state organization that serves more than 10,000 individuals annually through 23 locations across Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan, along with serving the greater community at large with home health and hospice services. 

The recent affiliations/acquisitions include mostly single-site organizations such as Franklin United Methodist Community, IN; SpringMeade Health Center and Residences, OH; and Vista Grand Villa, MI. Of the new Otterbein SeniorLife sites, Wilson said, “We had the ability to recognize organizations that have had an historical culture or presence in their communities and still have enormous vitality and viability. By pairing together, we’ve not only strengthened the organization we’re affiliated with, but also the greater good of Otterbein SeniorLife by preserving our faith-based, nonprofit mission.” 

Miller calls Wilson “one of the most respected and visionary leaders in the aging services field … she is thoughtful, strategic, and deeply committed to serving not only older adults, but also the people who serve them.”

The past chair of LeadingAge Ohio and the Ohio Board of Executives of Long-Term Services and Supports, as well as chair of Premier Health System, a $2.5 billion integrated health system serving Southwest Ohio, the immediate past chair of Caring Communities, a provider-owned insurance company serving not-for-profit aging services organizations nationwide, and the past chair of AgingIN, the recent rebrand of The Center for Innovation, which includes the Pioneer Network and the Greenhouse Project, Wilson has been a mentor to many within Otterbein SeniorLife and beyond over the years. “Being a mentor is the willingness to share your own personal vulnerabilities and be willing to do that on a deep level,” she said. “It’s about being able to share real accomplishments in a way that’s transparent—which means sharing the challenges and the results, too.” 

Pam Richmond, who has been at Otterbein SeniorLife since 2011, works in strategy and new ministry development. She admires Wilson for being “firm but fair” and praises Wilson for inspiring those around her “to want to do more.” Both accountants, Richmond says there have been many times over the years when the two would “burn the midnight oil together” to complete a project. “Jill doesn’t ask anyone to do something she wouldn’t do herself,” Richmond said, adding Otterbein SeniorLife and its entire team benefit from the “purposeful culture” Wilson has created. 

Wilson calls technological advances “a strategic arm” in aging services. She also believes there is great opportunity with the workforce. “We’re only going to have workforce challenges if we aren’t willing to offer what our workforce wants and needs,” she said. Otterbein SeniorLife has created its own internal staffing agency which Wilson says gives people flexibility with their work schedules, and they have an Uber-like scheduling system people can download to their phones. 

The future is expanding all the time, with opportunities for growth and new ways of living, said Wilson, as she described Union Village, a newly created multigenerational community in Lebanon, OH. 

“We created a master land plan on 1200 acres of Otterbein SeniorLife land, based on new urbanism,” she explained. “We are building and developing this intergenerational town, centered across the street from our first campus. When it’s fully developed, it will be a town of 12,000 people—blurring the lines between the retirement community and the town. Union Village is our single for-profit venture, a venture where derived profits may be used to further extend our not-for-profit mission.” 

When asked what she perceives to be the challenges and opportunities on the horizon for the aging services field, Wilson smiles. “I see nothing but goodness. This is the most exciting time in my 30 years in senior living,” she said. “The demand for services of all kinds is just beginning its peak. Boomers want to create their own senior living environment and that’s terribly exciting because it provides all kinds of wonderful opportunities. The best part of senior living is before us right now.”