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The Hoehl Family Foundation
The Hoehl Family Foundation was established in 1993 by Robert and Cynthia Hoehl in Clearwater, Vermont. Robert Hoehl co-founded IDX Systems, a pioneering...
The Hoehl Family Foundation
The Hoehl Family Foundation was established in 1993 by Robert and Cynthia Hoehl in Clearwater, Vermont. Robert Hoehl co-founded IDX Systems, a pioneering healthcare IT company later acquired by GE Healthcare for $1.2 billion in 2006, alongside Richard Tarrant. Cynthia Hoehl was a noted Vermont philanthropist whose giving focused on education, the arts, and human services. Both founders are now deceased — Robert in 2010, Cynthia in 2016 — and governance of the foundation passed to their three children, John, Peter, and Martha, who serve as trustees. The foundation pursues a bifurcated strategy: direct charitable grants to Vermont organizations and a venture capital investment program. Public grantmaking has concentrated on local institutions including the Hoehl Family Foundation Gallery at the University of Vermont Medical Center, the Stern Center for Language and Learning, and various human-service nonprofits. On the investment side, the foundation allocates to venture capital funds as a limited partner, with a disclosed focus on general venture capital strategies. The foundation held a 2021 Genesis vehicle on its books, suggesting participation in early-stage or venture-stage pooled vehicles. Geographic emphasis remains overwhelmingly Vermont for grants, while venture commitments follow the national footprint of underlying fund managers. Day-to-day administration is managed by Laura Latka, the foundation's Philanthropic Advisor, who works with the three Hoehl sibling trustees. The foundation's investment posture appears lean, with no known internal investment staff, consistent with a family foundation that primarily commits to outside funds rather than building an internal direct-investing capability. The Hoehl family maintains a residential real estate portfolio in Vermont alongside the foundation's financial assets. The foundation's website describes its mission as helping those most in need while honoring the legacy of the Hoehl family's generosity over time. The foundation's structure is notable for combining a geographically concentrated giving program with a floating venture capital allocation — a pattern common among tech-founders' family foundations but unusual in rural Vermont. The sibling-trustee governance model places investment and grant decisions in the hands of three family members with no public record of institutional investment careers, suggesting reliance on fund-manager relationships or consultant guidance for venture allocations. This creates a configuration closer to a small family office's investment committee than a professionally staffed foundation grantmaking operation.
General information
Firm type
Endowment / Foundation
Year founded
1993
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Clearwater
Corporate office
Clearwater, VT, United States
Principals
John Hoehl
Trustee
Peter 'Tad' Hoehl
Trustee
Martha Hoehl
Trustee
Laura Latka
Foundation Manager and Philanthropic Advisor
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at The Hoehl Family Foundation?
The three Hoehl siblings — John, Peter 'Tad,' and Martha Hoehl — serve as trustees and are the ultimate decision-makers for both grantmaking and investment commitments. Laura Latka, the foundation's Philanthropic Advisor, manages day-to-day administration. There is no named chief investment officer or internal investment staff, which is consistent with a foundation that primarily commits capital to external venture funds rather than making direct investments.
Where does the underlying wealth come from?
The foundation's wealth originated from Robert Hoehl, who co-founded IDX Systems, a Burlington, Vermont-based healthcare information technology company. IDX developed practice management and electronic health record systems for large physician groups. General Electric acquired IDX in 2006 for $1.2 billion, providing the liquidity that funded the foundation's endowment.
Is The Hoehl Family Foundation structured as a single family office or a traditional foundation?
It is a private family foundation with a structure closer to a traditional grantmaking foundation than a full-service family office. It makes charitable grants to Vermont nonprofits and commits capital to venture capital funds as a limited partner. It does not appear to engage in direct private company investing, direct real estate acquisitions outside the family's residential holdings, or the multi-generational wealth services that define a full single-family office.
Does the foundation participate in fund commitments or only direct deals?
The foundation allocates to venture capital funds as a limited partner. Available records show a 2021 Genesis vehicle in the portfolio, and the foundation's stated strategy is venture capital — general, not direct or co-investment. There is no public evidence of direct startup investing, side-by-side co-investments, or SPV participation.
Which sectors does The Hoehl Family Foundation explicitly avoid?
The foundation does not publish a formal exclusion list. Its grantmaking focus is clearly bounded by geography — it funds organizations in Vermont communities, with no record of national or international grant programs. On the venture side, the foundation's general venture capital strategy does not indicate sector avoidance, though its IDX Systems heritage suggests potential familiarity with healthcare IT rather than an explicit mandate.
Does the foundation maintain philanthropic structures, and how are they separated from investment activities?
The foundation itself is the philanthropic structure — a 501(c)(3) private foundation under US tax law. Grantmaking and venture capital commitments both operate within this single foundation vehicle. There is no separate donor-advised fund, supporting organization, or operating charity disclosed, though the foundation has funded named spaces at the University of Vermont Medical Center and other institutions through direct grants.
How is The Hoehl Family Foundation related to IDX Systems or its co-founders?
Robert Hoehl co-founded IDX Systems with Richard Tarrant. The foundation is entirely separate from IDX, which was acquired by GE Healthcare in 2006 and no longer operates under that name. Richard Tarrant is not a trustee or officer of the foundation. The only connection is that Robert Hoehl's IDX proceeds funded the foundation's endowment.
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