40 Under 40

• In 2019, Roy was named System Vice President of Philanthropy at Baptist Health System. This was significant not just because it was a new position created to strategically advance philanthropy across nine markets in Kentucky and Indiana and prepare for the first comprehensive, system-wide transformational $100 million campaign, but at 37, he was the youngest vice president ever to be named at the nearly 100-year-old health system.
• In 2014, Roy was appointed Director of Advancement at Baptist Health Paducah and achieved landmark philanthropic achievements, including leading Baptist Health Paducah’s first capital campaign that surpassed the $10 million goal by $2 million to raise $12 million in one year. 

1. How did you get into healthcare philanthropy?

When relocating from one end of Kentucky to the other, I was recruited by a former colleague who was conducting a talent search for a local hospital. It’s a great reminder that you never know where a connection may lead. 

2. Why did you choose to make healthcare philanthropy your career?

Coming from a family of educators, I always connected with the calling of service. To serve people during some of life’s most pivotal moments through healthcare philanthropy really resonated with me. We are all called to use our talents for the greatest impact–and this is where I ultimately felt called to serve.

3. Tell us about a pivot point or crucial step in your career journey.

The most crucial step along my career journey was my transition from higher education to healthcare philanthropy. As we relocated to a new community and my wife began her pediatric practice, I accepted an opportunity to try healthcare philanthropy. From that point on, I knew this is where I was being led to make a difference.

4. What was your first job, and what is something it taught you?

High School Summer Project Crew–it is where I learned that no task is too small to make a big difference.

5. What are your future aspirations?

As the late Steve Jobs once said, “we are here to put a dent in the universe.” That is what I aspire to do through my continued dedication to healthcare philanthropy.