Dr. Robert Nathan Mayer, the president for 25 years of the Hulda B. and Maurice L. Rothschild Foundation, passed away in December. He was 66.

Mayer’s great-uncle and -aunt, Maurice L. and Hulda Rothschild, had owned Rothschild’s clothing stores; upon her death, Hulda requested that Mayer oversee their charitable funds. The Foundation was recognized in 2009 by the Council on Foundations with its Critical Impact Award.

Mayer was a long-term board member of CJE SeniorLife; its President and CEO Mark Weiner recalls that Mayer was “a dedicated and hard-working board member, a true believer in person-centered care.”

In 2012, Mayer was named one of the eight most influential people in healthcare design by Healthcare Design Magazine ; the following year, he received the Founder’s Award from the Healthcare Facilities Symposium & Expo.

Earlier, Mayer spent 14 years in the private sector at a Fortune 100 multi-national Corp. He later founded HomeCorps, a healthcare company to serve the elderly and those with disabilities.

Mayer was a regular contributor to JUF. A leader at the Council on Foundations, he also was a founder and trustee of the American Civil War Museum, and a trustee at the Museum of Contemporary Art and the Latin School of Chicago.

Mayer’s grandfather was Nathan Cummings, who founded Consolidated Foods, which grew to include Sara Lee (where Mayer worked in the mailroom), and other major brands. Cummings once took all his grandchildren to Israel, where they visited Prime Minister Golda Meir. Mayer grew up to serve as chair and treasurer of The Nathan Cummings Foundation.

Mayer grew up in Winnetka, attended school at North Shore Congregation Israel and North Shore Country Day School. He earned his bachelor’s at Kenyon College, his MBA at the University of Chicago, and his PhD from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. He later served as academic director at the Kellogg’s Center for Non-Profit Management.

Mayer is survived by his wife of 39 years, Dr. Debra Weese-Mayer, their children-Dr. Jennifer Robyn Mayer, Jaimie Ariel Mayer, and Jonathan Robert Mayer. He is also survived by his mother, Beatrice “Buddy” Mayer, his sister Ruth Durchslag, and his brothers Dr. Jim (Barbara) Weese and Dr. Bill (Lynn Wetherbee) Weese, as well as dear nieces and one nephew and his mother-in-law Mrs. Florence K. Weese. He was preceded in death by his father, Robert B. Mayer.

The family has asked that donations in his honor be made to The Hulda B. and Maurice L. Rothschild Foundation, c/o Dr. Debra E. Weese-Mayer at The Northern Trust Company, 50 South LaSalle Street, Chicago, IL 60603. All gifts should specify “Rob Mayer Memorial Gift.”

A private family interment was at Rosehill Cemetery; arrangements were entrusted to Lakeshore Jewish Funerals.