Tad Gary
What do you do: I am the deputy CEO of Mercy Care, a not-for-profit managed-care health plan that exists to address and advocate for the comprehensive health of its members and their families, with special consideration for the underserved and those with complex health needs regardless of race, color, religion, ethnicity, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age or disability.
Share with us how you give back: I serve on the board for the Maricopa County Continuum of Care, which is the countywide entity that allocates housing funds, and the Greater Phoenix Chamber. I was also appointed to the Phoenix Police Review and Implementation Ad Hoc Committee and am a former president of the Arizona Counselors Association and former president of the Institute for Mental Health Research EpiCenter, serving adolescents experiencing their first episodes of psychosis. I also served for years on the one-n-ten board of directors. Beyond this, I am very proud to be actively involved in a newly announced Mercy Care supported program with Community Bridges. Our aim with this is to actively engage with individuals living on the street and engage them into support services including both primary and mental health care, and then eventually into a level of housing. Also through Mercy Care, I am involved with Mercy C.A.R.E.S., which stands for Community Action Resources Education and Service. Through Mercy C.A.R.E.S., we identify projects that address important community needs and ensure support for our most vulnerable citizens. Our grantees partner with us to further our mission to help Arizonans live healthier lives and achieve their full potential. This year, $3,573,000 was awarded in grants ranging from $10,000 to $500,000 to support organizations that address Mercy Care’s comprehensive health focus areas, which are: addictions, housing, school-based services, women’s health and food insecurity.
Share with us why you give back: I grew up in a close-knit military family in a humble pocket of Los Angeles in the late 1970s and early 1980s. My parents did their best to shelter me from the gang violence, homelessness and drug use prevalent in the area at the time. However, drugs and mental illness, including the resulting housing insecurity that often comes with them, did touch my family. Thankfully, I was lucky to find two early passions that kept me focused: swimming and music. We relocated to Arizona when I was in high school, and after graduating from NAU – and having my family more significantly touched by mental illness and substance use – I felt compelled to help others dealing with what our family was facing and have focused on that ever since.
Tell us about one nonprofit you support and why: one-n-ten is a very special nonprofit to me. Its mission is to serve LGBTQ youth and young adults ages 11 to 24. We enhance their lives by providing empowering social and service programs that promote self‐expression, self‐acceptance, leadership development and healthy life choices.