September 9, 2026 Washington, DC — LeadingAge, the association of nonprofit and mission-driven aging services providers, is proud to announce that Jill Wilson, president and CEO of Otterbein SeniorLife, is the recipient of the 2026 LeadingAge Award of Honor.
Bestowed annually for more than 60 years, the Award of Honor is among the nonprofit aging services sector’s most prestigious recognitions. This year’s award celebrates Wilson’s three decades of leadership in aging services and her transformative impact on senior living through strategic growth, innovation, mentorship, and mission-driven leadership.
Wilson has served as president and CEO of Otterbein SeniorLife since 2009 after holding several executive leadership positions within the organization, including chief financial officer and executive vice president. During her time at Otterbein, the organization has expanded significantly through affiliations, acquisitions, campus developments, strategic joint ventures, and new ventures, growing into a multi-state organization that serves more than 10,000 individuals annually through 23 locations across Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan, while also providing home health and hospice services.
Throughout her career, Wilson has championed the preservation and strengthening of nonprofit senior living organizations. Through Otterbein’s affiliations with mission-driven providers across the Midwest, she has helped ensure the continued vitality of organizations with deep community roots while advancing a shared commitment to faith-based, nonprofit service.
Beyond her role at Otterbein, Wilson contributes her expertise to the broader aging services sector and the health care community through a range of governance and industry leadership roles. She currently serves on the Premier Health board of trustees, which she chairs, and is the immediate past chair of Caring Communities, a provider-owned insurance organization serving nonprofit aging services providers nationwide. She is also a past chair of LeadingAge Ohio and the Ohio Board of Executives of Long-Term Services and Supports and the past chair of AgingIN, the recent rebrand of The Center for Innovation, which includes the Pioneer Network and the Greenhouse Project.
Wilson is widely respected for a leadership philosophy centered on collaboration, empowering teams, and what she describes as “productive struggle“—an approach that encourages organizations to continually innovate, ask difficult questions, and pursue new possibilities in service to older adults.
“Jill Wilson embodies the vision, courage, and commitment that have helped shape the future of aging services,” said Katie Smith Sloan, president and CEO of LeadingAge. “For more than 30 years, she has demonstrated an unwavering dedication to advancing mission-driven care while fostering innovation and growth across the field. Her ability to bring people together around a shared vision, preserve nonprofit missions, and create opportunities for older adults and the workforce alike has made an extraordinary impact. We are proud to recognize Jill with the 2026 Award of Honor for her remarkable leadership and enduring contributions to aging services.”
Wilson will be recognized on Tuesday, October 27 at the LeadingAge Annual Meeting in Philadelphia, PA, October 25-28, 2026.
