Immanuel CEO Eric Gurley is retiring in mid-2026, beginning a search for a new top leader at the senior living nonprofit.
Gurley, who rose to the CEO role at Immanuel in 2009, is slated to step down in June 2026. With the announcement, the nonprofit’s board of directors is officially searching for the organization’s next president and CEO.
Helping Immanuel through a divestiture of its acute care and skilling nursing segment in 2012 from Catholic Health Initiatives and pivoting to senior living is Gurley’s greatest achievement as CEO and president, he told Senior Housing News.
“It was a pretty big decision and we recognized that through this and we quickly went from a small organization into a regional organization capable of serving more people,” Gurley told SHN. “Part of my charge here was to be innovative and to meet the needs of the community.”
Gurley has steered the organization through a period of change and innovation, not to mention the tough days of the Covid-19 pandemic five years ago.
Since his time with the organization, Immanuel has transformed from a $25 million organization serving 900 residents into a regional senior living operator generating $200 million annually through various senior living service lines.
Since his time as CEO, Immanuel has grown adding eight communities in Nebraska and Iowa, along with additional neighborhoods in other communities. Today, the organization serves nearly 2,900 older adults with 1,700 employees across 18 communities and three Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) centers.
“These changes weren’t as simple as just add-water-and-mix,” Gurley said. “There was a lot of conflict and challenges that we overcame together and we had to weather a lot of storms and there was a lot of change that was required to get where we are today.”
Technology integration and innovation “played a big role” in facilitating the many changes Immanuel made since 2009. But Gurley cautioned operators to not overextend their resources in the name of simply implementing the latest and greatest technology platforms. He called artificial intelligence (AI) “incredibly exciting” for the industry’s future, but stressed that service must remain the guiding principle for operators as they embark in this new AI-infused reality.
In looking back on his career, Gurley feels that his leadership style reflected “humility and service,” aiming to make decisions that improved the lives of older adults served through the Immanuel system of communities, in line with the organization’s faith-based affiliation.
Gurley hopes that the next leader for Immanuel will also embody those aspects of humility and service, calling Immanuel’s success dependent upon a “relay race” of CEOs and top leaders over the course of the organization’s 135-year history.
“Be mindful not to bring in someone who thinks it’s all about themselves,” Gurley urged. “I’ve led this organization for 17 years, but it isn’t about me. I ran my leg, my job is to hand the baton to the next leader. I hope the focus stays on that.”
He also said he was proud of spending time in communities and helping residents form bonds with each other and the wider world, recalling fond memories of residents he met over the years.
Gurley’s message to the organization’s next CEO and president is to take heed of the fact that the organization’s past success, and reflect on what it took to achieve it.
The post Immanuel CEO to Retire, Senior Living Operator Starts Search for New Top Leader appeared first on Senior Housing News.
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