Charles J. Herman, Jr.
Executive Vice President & Chief Investment Officer
Mr. Herman provided consulting services to Health Care REIT before he was recruited to become Vice President of Operations in 2000. He served as Vice President and Chief Investment Officer beginning in 2004 before being named to his current position in 2006.
Active in industry leadership positions, Mr. Herman is on the Executive Boards of Assisted Living Federation of America (ALFA), National Investment Center for the Seniors Housing Care Industry (NIC) and American Seniors Housing Association(ASHA). Prior to joining Health Care REIT, he was a founder and executive of two health care consulting companies, HTG Consultants, LLC and Capital Valuation Group.
Mr. Herman earned his MBA from Rider University and his BS from Rider College.
cherman@hcreit.com
419.247.2805
J. Michael Stephen
Senior Vice President – Marketing
Mr. Stephen serves as Senior Vice President – Marketing for Health Care REIT. He is responsible for client origination and relationship management. He joined the company in 1996 as Vice President – Marketing.
Prior to joining Health Care REIT, Mr. Stephen was with Bell Atlantic Capital from 1984 to 1996. His focus was on health care lending and his final position at the firm was Vice President of Health Care Real Estate.
Active in industry associations, Mr. Stephen is on the President’s Council of ALFA, as well as the NIC National Skilled Nursing Investment Forum Planning Committee. He received his BBA from Texas Tech University.
mstephen@hcreit.com
941.316.0201
Mercedes Kerr
Senior Vice President – Marketing
Ms. Kerr serves as Senior Vice President – Marketing for Health Care REIT as a member of the company's transaction team. She joined the company in 2008 and has nearly 20 years of experience in real estate development and acquisitions.
Prior to joining Health Care REIT, Ms. Kerr served as Vice President – Acquisitions at HCP, Inc., where she worked for nine years. She spent two years with E&Y Kenneth Leventhal Real Estate Group, focusing on hospitality consulting. Ms. Kerr also spent many years with a prominent real estate delevopment company in her native Mexico.
Ms. Kerr graduated from the Universidad Autonoma de Guadalajara in Mexico and obtained a Master of Real Estate Development degree from the University of Southern California.
mkerr@hcreit.com
714.389.3380
Joseph P. Weisenburger
Vice President – Seniors Housing
Mr. Weisenburger serves as the Vice President of Seniors Housing for Health Care REIT. He has been involved in underwriting, originating and investing in seniors housing. Mr. Weisenburger also led the underwriting of seniors housing at Health Care REIT.
Prior to joining the company, Mr. Weisenburger was an investment analyst for Northwest Ohio Venture Fund, responsible for the evaluation and underwriting of private debt and equity investments in small Midwestern based companies.
Mr. Weisenburger earned an MBA from the Fischer College of Business at the Ohio State University and a BS from Miami University.
jweisenburger@hcreit.com
419.247.2884
Michelle R. Kelly
Vice President – Relationship Manager, Team Leader
Ms. Kelly leads the team responsible for managing all of the company’s RIDEA joint venture investments, as well as several other key strategic relationships. This includes driving financial performance, client satisfaction, operational excellence and promoting both organic growth and growth through acquisitions and/or development.
Prior to joining Health Care REIT in 2011, Ms. Kelly spent over 10 years in GE Capital’s Healthcare Financial Services, focused primarily on debt for seniors housing and skilled nursing. She began her career at Heller Financial as a member of its Associate Development Program, ultimately joining its health care real estate business.
Ms. Kelly holds a BS from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
mkelly@hcreit.com
773.420.7237
Christopher M. Simon
Vice President – Relationship Manager
Mr. Simon is responsible for all aspects of monitoring, reporting and management of Health Care REIT’s seniors housing portfolio. He also directed development of the company’s proprietary asset management software, Vantage, which provides instant access to performance trends, credit information, legal documents and more.
Actively involved in the seniors housing industry, Mr. Simon has taught at the Erickson School of Aging Studies and served on the NIC/ASHA financial task force and the MAP technical subcommittee.
Mr. Simon has a BS from Miami University and an MBA from the University of Michigan.
csimon@hcreit.com
419.247.2797
Christian B. Sweetser
Vice President – Seniors Housing Finance & Planning
Mr. Sweetser joined the company in 2011 and brings over 10 years of experience in corporate and project finance. Prior to joining Health Care REIT, he was employed by Union Pacific Corporation as a Director of Corporate Finance and Treasury. Prior to Union Pacific, Mr. Sweetser was employed as an Assistant Vice President of Commercial Real Estate at Sovereign Bank.
Mr. Sweetser holds an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and a BBA from Cornell University. In addition, Mr. Sweetser is a CFA Charterholder.
419.247.5698
Jason A. Perry
Vice President – Relationship Manager
Mr. Perry serves as Vice President – Relationship Manager for Health Care REIT. He joined the company in 2010. In this role, Mr. Perry manages and oversees the financial and operational performance of key relationships in the company's seniors housing portfolio.
Prior to joining Health Care REIT, Mr. Perry served as Manager of Acquisitions at HCR ManorCare, where he worked for over 10 years, with responsibility for the company’s merger, acquisition and divestiture activity.
Mr. Perry received his undergraduate degree and MBA from Miami University.
419.247.5662
Brandon P. Lesniak
Vice President – Relationship Manager
Mr. Lesniak serves as Vice President – Relationship Manager for Health Care REIT. He joined the company in early 2011. In this role, Mr. Lesniak manages and oversees the financial and operational performance of key relationships in the company's seniors housing portfolio.
Prior to joining Health Care REIT, Mr. Lesniak served as a Regional Director of Operations and Divisional Director of Operations Support at HCR ManorCare. Additionally, he held finance and operations roles while working at Morgan Stanley and Marriott Hotels.
Mr. Lesniak received his undergraduate degree from Michigan State University and MBA from University of Detroit-Mercy.
419.247.5696