Gregory Grove

Gregory Kent Grove (‘69 BA) of Atlanta, is CEO of The Centurion Foundation, Inc., which assists non-profit hospital systems achieve their purpose by developing, providing financing, and leasing facilities.

In early 2020, I turned my attention to The Centurion Foundation after retiring from leadership of The Guardian Foundation, Inc., following 30 years as President & CEO. Founding Guardian it in 1989, I led the organization to acquire and develop more than 30 facilities for senior care and the developmentally disabled in six east coast states, following a previous career in investment banking in New York City and Atlanta.

After graduating from the Asheville School in 1965 and UNC-Chapel Hill in 1969, I spent eight years in New Orleans, two at Tulane earning a MBA degree and the rest with Merrill Lynch. In 1978 I joined Oppenheimer & Co., in Ft. Lauderdale and in 1980 moved to their headquarters in New York City.

In 1981 I married Nancy Whalen whom I met while in Ft. Lauderdale. After a short stint with Shearson/American Express in their NYC office on the 106th floor of Two World Trade Center, Nancy and I moved to Atlanta in 1983 where I started an investment banking firm and we started a family.

Nancy and I have two sons: Hunter, 1984, married and living in NYC; and Taylor, 1986; living and working in Atlanta.

I managed the investment banking firm until the early 1990s when changes in tax-exempt bond laws and the economy prompted a change. I had founded The Guardian Foundation, Inc., in 1989 and grew it to operate more than thirty health care facilities in six states with over 2,500 employees. In June 2010 I hosted our annual Risk Management Conference at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville. Life had come full circle.

Not wanting to slow my pace or retire, I'm active as CEO of The Centurion Foundation, Inc., assisting non-profit hospital systems achieve their purpose by developing, providing financing, and leasing facilities.

Though I attended the Asheville School for only one year, the experience has helped shape my life and establish a work ethic which has stayed with me through these many years. I feel fortunate to be among the alumni and the Class of 1965.

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