5/30/12 – Rick Bragga Receives AHP Award of Excellence


ALEXANDRIA, VA (May 30, 2012) – The Mid-Atlantic Region of the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy (AHP) has presented Rick Bragga, JD, FAHP, with the Award of Excellence for exemplary service and extraordinary leadership in the field of health care development. The 1000-member division of AHP, which spans a seven-state region from New York to Virginia, recognized Bragga at its recent annual conference in Alexandria.

In his nearly three-decade career promoting philanthropy on behalf of health care institutions, Bragga is the only member of the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy to have received the association’s top awards for professional writing, lifetime leadership and research. He is a senior consultant for Corporate DevelopMint, a national firm that advises nonprofit organizations in meeting their development needs.

“Rick has demonstrated excellence in all his health care fundraising positions helping organizations reach their potential,” says Pamela Ronka Maroulis, CFRE, AHP Mid-Atlantic education chair and director of development for the Inova Loudoun Hospital Foundation.

“Rick is the type of person who can make things happen. He is a great colleague and asset to the profession,” adds Ellen Finnerty Myers, CFRE, director of AHP’s Mid-Atlantic Region and chief development officer and vice president of community affairs at Carroll Hospital Center Foundation in Westminster, Md.

Bragga has twice been the recipient of both AHP’s research award and journal award for best article. A past regional director of the association, Bragga chaired two of the region’s education conferences, and during his tenure as annual fund chair, the region was honored by the association with four national first place awards.

A resident of Richmond, Va., Bragga was previously recognized by AHP in 2008 with the Si Seymour International Award for his distinguished lifetime of national and international leadership and outstanding contributions to health care philanthropy. He is also a Fellow of the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy (FAHP), the association’s highest professional credential.

Bragga holds both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in mass communications from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville and a law degree from Oklahoma City University School of Law. He has been an active board member of the Heart of Virginia Council of the Boy Scouts of America and serves on the national alumni and Eagle Scout Association committees. Rick also chairs the National Scouting Museum committee.

The Association for Healthcare Philanthropy, established in 1967, is a not-for-profit organization whose more than 4,900 members direct philanthropic programs in 2,000 of North America’s nonprofit health care providers. The association’s Mid-Atlantic Region covers New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia.

Hospitals, health care systems and related facilities for which AHP members raise charitable funds provide essential, comprehensive services to their communities, as well as wellness programs, mobile health vans, mammography screenings, hearing and eye exams, and many other community-based health care services.