Updated:
Children's Wisconsin
Children's Wisconsin was founded in 1894 as a charitable pediatric hospital, establishing one of the longest continuously operating children's health...
Children's Wisconsin
Children's Wisconsin was founded in 1894 as a charitable pediatric hospital, establishing one of the longest continuously operating children's health endowments in the United States. Its governance sits with a board chaired by Patrick Hammes, managing principal of healthcare real estate firm Hammes Partners, while Atlantic Harbor Group's Kaitie Gannett provides family-office investment vantage on the board. The institution functions with financial and clinical autonomy from adult hospital systems — a structural distinction that shapes its capital deployment. The asset mix pulls from a hospital treasury playbook widened by direct real assets and a philanthropic foundation. Owned commercial property spans its Milwaukee hospital campus on Wisconsin Avenue, a corporate center, research institute, and outlying office buildings in Neenah and Wauwatosa. The foundation structure — Children's Hospital of Wisconsin Foundation, Inc. — pools philanthropic gifts for pediatric research and care. Physical assets including a Flight for Life helicopter and pediatric mobile ICUs add operational tangibility to the balance sheet. The disclosed Caribbean investment portfolio, while opaque in composition, sits outside the typical menu for a Midwest health system. CFO Marc Cadieux manages the financial architecture, which includes partnerships with the Medical College of Wisconsin through the Forward Pediatric Alliance and Children's Research Institute. Cadieux also chairs the board of Special Olympics Wisconsin, reflecting a community linkage that extends into the Green Bay Packers philanthropic network. Team size and total investable assets remain undisclosed, though the real estate holdings — seven owned commercial properties — and the Caribbean investment sleeve indicate a directly managed, principal-style allocation. What differentiates Children's Wisconsin from other nonprofit health systems is the disclosed self-directed investment activity that resembles a single-family office. The presence of a family-office head on the board (Gannett), a board chair whose own firm specializes in healthcare real estate (Hammes), and an explicit Caribbean investment portfolio suggests a hybrid model: part health-system treasury, part direct allocator.
General information
Firm type
Endowment / Foundation
Year founded
1894
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Milwaukee
Corporate office
Milwaukee, WI, United States
Additional offices
Neenah, WI, United States
Principals
Kaitie Gannett
Head of Investments
Gil Peri
President and CEO
Patrick Hammes
Board Co-Chair
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at Children's Wisconsin?
Kaitie Gannett leads investments for Children's Wisconsin as Head of Investments. She joined the health system from Mason Wells, a Milwaukee-based private equity firm, where she served as a Director. Gannett's role spans the system's endowment-style pools, direct venture commitments, and commercial real estate holdings concentrated in the Milwaukee area (per Altss research).
How is Children's Wisconsin's investment office structured?
The investment function operates internally, not as a separate outsourced CIO arrangement. Gannett runs a program that blends mission-aligned endowment management with direct investments, including venture capital and commercial real estate assets tied to the health system's Milwaukee footprint. The office maintains co-investor relationships with Mason Wells, Gannett's prior firm.
Does Children's Wisconsin invest directly in venture capital?
Yes. The portfolio includes direct venture capital commitments across multiple strategies, according to Altss research. The firm's strategy tags indicate general venture capital allocations. Additionally, a Central American and Caribbean investment portfolio sits within the broader asset mix, suggesting an international venture or private equity mandate.
What real estate does Children's Wisconsin hold?
The portfolio includes six commercial properties in Wisconsin: the Milwaukee Hospital at 9000 W. Wisconsin Avenue, the Corporate Center at 999 N. 92nd Street, Summit Place in West Allis, the Woodlake Business Center in Wauwatosa, the Fox Valley Hospital in Neenah, and the Children's Research Institute on Watertown Plank Road in Milwaukee (per Altss research).
How does the Children's Wisconsin Foundation relate to the investment portfolio?
The Children's Wisconsin Foundation operates as a separate philanthropic entity that raises donor capital to support pediatric research, clinical programs, and hospital initiatives. While distinct from the investment office, foundation assets contribute to the broader capital base that the health system deploys. Gannett's investment team manages the endowment-style pools, not the foundation's donor-advised funds.
What is the relationship between Children's Wisconsin and Mason Wells?
The connection runs through Kaitie Gannett, who previously sourced buyout deals as a Director at Mason Wells before becoming Head of Investments at Children's Wisconsin. The two entities maintain a co-investor relationship, with Mason Wells listed as a co-investor of the health system's investment program (per Altss research). This creates a deal-flow pipeline into the lower-mid-market private equity and healthcare sectors where Mason Wells operates.
Where is Children's Wisconsin's capital deployed geographically?
The investment footprint centers on Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where the health system owns multiple commercial properties, a research institute, and its flagship hospital. Beyond Wisconsin, the portfolio extends to a Central American and Caribbean investment vehicle, per Altss research. The firm's venture capital commitments suggest broader geographic reach through fund investments.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
Need institutional-grade insight on endowments & foundations?
Altss delivers:
Prefer a guided tour?
We’ll walk you through: