Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Foundation

Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Foundation

The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Foundation was established in 1983 to convert charitable giving into a durable funding engine for the hospital's clinical care, research, and community health programs. President and CEO Madeline Bell leads the effort, and the board draws operating expertise from corporate Philadelphia: Vice Chair Christopher Gheysens runs Wawa, Treasurer Seth Lehr is a partner at LLR Partners, and Secretary Brian M. McNeill co-founded Littlejohn & Co. Beyond traditional grantmaking, the foundation deploys capital directly into venture investments focused on pediatric medicine, digital health, and life sciences. The fund targets early-stage companies where innovation can improve outcomes for children — a mandate that spans therapeutics, medical devices, and health IT. The foundation's relationship with the hospital's research enterprise gives it a proprietary view into clinical needs and translational science; it can fund spinouts from CHOP's own labs or co-invest alongside venture firms that bring deal flow through board relationships. Corporate partners — including Wawa, through its own foundation, and NRG Energy via its 'Choose to Give' program — add a recurring capital base that supplements individual donations. The foundation operates from the CHOP campus in Philadelphia's University City district, adjacent to the Roberts Center for Pediatric Research and the Morgan Center for Research and Innovation. The physical proximity to CHOP's clinical and research operations is a sourcing advantage: the foundation can evaluate technologies emerging from the hospital's own physicians and scientists. The board includes executives with deep operating and investing experience — a governance structure that supports direct venture decisions alongside the professional investment team. In April 2025, Madeline Bell joined the board of Comcast, extending the foundation's network deeper into Philadelphia's corporate and technology ecosystem. What separates CHOP Foundation from most hospital-affiliated endowments is its direct venture posture. Where peer institutions typically invest through fund-of-funds or external managers, CHOP's foundation acts as a principal, funding companies whose products often become clinical tools inside the hospital itself. That feedback loop — from bedside need to venture investment to clinical deployment — makes the foundation a strategic investor rather than a passive allocator.