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Heartland Health and Wellness Fund
The Heartland Health and Wellness Fund was established in 1965 as a multi-employer defined benefit plan for members of United Food and Commercial Workers...
Heartland Health and Wellness Fund
The Heartland Health and Wellness Fund was established in 1965 as a multi-employer defined benefit plan for members of United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) locals, including Locals 75, 700, 1776, and 400. CEO Katy Gozalka leads the Dayton, Ohio operation alongside CFO Rick Mains and Operations Director Eric Mueller. Chairman Kevin Quickel, tied to UFCW Local 700, anchors trustee oversight. The fund provides retirement, disability, and death benefits to a unionized workforce concentrated in grocery and retail. The fund's investment strategy is narrowly focused on secondary-market transactions, a posture consistent with its modest size and the liquidity demands of paying monthly benefits to an aging participant base. Rather than chasing primary fund commitments or direct deals, Heartland purchases existing LP interests, targeting discounted entry points and shorter duration to cash flows. This approach reduces blind-pool risk and J-curve drag, aligning the portfolio's cash-flow profile with actuarial outflows. No direct or co-investment activity has been publicly documented; the sole named position is the ACA TRP Litigation Settlement, a one-off recovery asset. With consolidated operations in Dayton and a lean professional staff, the fund participates in the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (IFEBP) network, where Ms. Gozalka is a frequent conference speaker. She also serves on the VSP National Advisory Board, a role consistent with the fund's wellness-oriented branding. No separate foundation, operating company, or adjacent investment vehicle has been disclosed. The fund's structure remains that of a traditional Taft-Hartley defined benefit plan, governed by a joint board of union and employer trustees. Structurally, Heartland is distinct from the consolidating multi-employer pension landscape. Its narrow secondaries mandate — unusual for a sub-$100 million plan — suggests an internal conviction or external advisor relationship that favors discounted, seasoned assets over new-issue access. This discipline is a direct function of its fiduciary duty to participants, not a marketing posture. The fund's long-term viability, like all multi-employer plans, depends on the health of contributing employers and the ratio of active to retired members.
General information
Firm type
Pension Fund
Year founded
1965
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Dayton
Corporate office
Dayton, OH, United States
Principals
Katy Gozalka
Chief Executive Officer
Kevin Quickel
Chairman of the Board of Trustees
Rick Mains
Chief Financial Officer
Eric Mueller
Director of Operations and Wellness
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at Heartland Health and Wellness Fund?
CEO Katy Gozalka oversees the fund's administration and investment strategy. The Board of Trustees, chaired by Kevin Quickel, holds ultimate fiduciary authority. Day-to-day investment execution may involve external consultants or an outsourced chief investment officer, though no specific advisor has been publicly named.
What does the fund's secondaries strategy actually entail?
The fund purchases existing limited partner interests on the secondary market rather than making primary commitments. This approach allows Heartland to acquire portfolios at discounts to net asset value, reduce blind-pool risk, and shorten the time to liquidity — a critical feature for a mature pension plan paying current benefits.
Which UFCW locals participate in the plan?
The fund covers members of several UFCW locals, including Local 75, Local 700, Local 1776, and Local 400, per Altss research. These locals represent workers across grocery, retail, and food-processing industries primarily in the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions.
Is Heartland Health and Wellness Fund a single-employer or multi-employer plan?
It is a multi-employer, or Taft-Hartley, defined benefit plan. Multiple unionized employers contribute under collective bargaining agreements, and a joint board of union and employer trustees governs the fund. This structure pools risk across a group of contributing employers.
Does the fund make direct investments in private companies?
No direct investment activity has been documented. The stated strategy focuses exclusively on secondary-market transactions, and the only known non-traditional asset is the ACA TRP Litigation Settlement, a recovery interest, per Altss research.
What is the fund's relationship with the United Food and Commercial Workers union?
The fund is not a division of the UFCW but an independent trust established to serve UFCW members. Union locals nominate trustees to the board, as do contributing employers, but the fund operates as a separate legal entity with its own fiduciary duties.
How does the fund handle its wellness mission beyond pension payments?
The 'Health and Wellness' branding reflects the fund's original design to provide both pension and welfare benefits, though current public materials emphasize the defined benefit pension function. Director of Operations and Wellness Eric Mueller's title suggests some wellness programming persists. CEO Katy Gozalka's board seat with VSP indicates continued engagement with health-benefit ecosystems.
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.
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