Mary Leary is Chief Executive Officer and President of Mather. Ms. Leary previously served as Chief Operating Officer of Classic Residence by Hyatt. She is a member of the Executive Board of the American Seniors Housing Association; the Operator Advisory Board, Research Committee, and Operator Catalyst Group of the National Investment Center; the Advisory Board of Cornell Institute for Healthy Futures; the board of the Institute for Innovation, Strategy and Leadership; and serves as Director of Churchill Casualty Ltd. Previously, she served as Director and Chair of the Risk Committee of Caring Communities, a Reciprocal Risk Retention Group. Ms. Leary founded Novare, a national consortium of Life Plan Community providers. She earned her bachelor's degree in Business and Health Services Administration from Cornell University and a master's degree in Health Policy and Management from Harvard University.
In 2019, Ms. Leary was named to the inaugural Hall of Honor in the McKnight’s Women of Distinction Awards and was recognized as a 2020 Changemaker by Senior Housing News. In 2023, Mary was honored as an Agent of Change in the inaugural McKnight’s Pinnacle Awards. In 2022 and 2023, she was recognized as one of the Top 5 Wellness CEOs in senior living in North America. In 2023, Ms. Leary was inducted into the Continuing Care/Life Plan Community Hall of Fame. In 2024, she was featured in The Entrepreneurial Spirit of Seniors Housing, published by ASHA/Senior Care Investor.
With a mission of enhancing the lives of older adults by creating Ways to Age Well, Mather develops and operates innovative Life Plan Communities, serves older adults through community initiatives, and conducts cutting-edge research through Mather Institute. Under Mary’s leadership, Mather has grown from serving 8,400 individuals in 2001 to 46,250 in 2025. Additionally, the organization has earned more than 425 awards recognizing excellence in quality, resident and employee engagement, innovation, research, and other areas.