Erie Chapman, M.T.S., J.D.,
President and CEO


Erie Chapman, M.T.S., J.D., is founding president and chief executive officer of the $150 million Baptist Healing Hospital Trust, Nashville, Tennessee. Across his extraordinary career he has served as a successful trial attorney, federal prosecuting attorney, night court judge, producer/host of an internationally syndicated television show (Life Choices with Erie Chapman & Kathleen Sullivan), newspaper columnist, radio talk show host, documentary film producer, and author. He is also a prize-winning photographer, a playwright, and a music composer (4 CDs). He is a recent graduate of Vanderbilt University Divinity School and has often taught at Vanderbilt.

The primary focus of Mr. Chapman's career, however, has been in the leadership of hospitals and healthcare organizations. Over a quarter century he served as President and CEO of Riverside Hospital in Toledo, Ohio (chosen at age 33 ) Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, the nine-hospital U.S. Health Corporation (now OhioHealth) in Columbus (founding president and CEO, 1983-1995) chief operating officer of the publicly traded InPhyNet Medical Management Co., Ft. Lauderdale; and Baptist Hospital System, Nashville where he served as President and CEO from 1998-2002.

Mr. Chapman is the author of the widely acclaimed book, Radical Loving Care - Building the New Healing Hospital in America ( 2003) now in its 10th printing . He is also the author of Sacred Work (2005) and The Caregiver Meditations (2007.) His children's book, Scotty the Snail, was published by Grandparents Press in 2004. He has written a novel, a collection of short stories, and he is finishing a book of collected poems. His playwriting has been produced in Florida and Tennessee.

Mr. Chapman has been described as the leader of the loving care movment in America. George Mikitarian, President & CEO of Parrish Medical Center, has said about him, "No one is doing more to affect the delivery of Healthcare than is Erie Chapman.

The following are additional comments on Radical Loving Care from well know leaders reflect the positive national reaction to this work:

Splendid, poetic, and eminently practical. Erie Chapman is a beacon of light in American Health care.
- David Whyte, poet and best selling author of The Heart Aroused

Chapman has written a book that should be in the hands of every healthcare executive who truly believes in the core mission of taking care of others. Anyone who leads a healthcare organization of any kind should read this book.
- Chuck Lauer, publisher, Modern Healthcare magazine.

Mr. Chapman's music compositions are available on four separate CDs. His three films, Sacred Work , The Servant's Heart and A Place Called Alive are available through the Baptist Healing Trust at www.healinghospital.org.

Erie and his wife, Kirsten, a prize-winning journalist and author of The Way Home, live in Nashville. They have two children and two grandchildren .

Kristen Keely-Dinger, MSSW
Vice-President of Program and Grants

Kristen Keely-Dinger is the Vice-President of Program and Grants at the Baptist Healing Trust. Kristen oversees the grant administration process for the Trust and works with Mr. Chapman on the Trust's programmatic initiatives. Kristen has been with the Trust since 2003 as their first Program Officer. In 2007, she became Vice-President. Before she came to the Trust, she was the Program Coordinator for the Bridges to Care program in Davidson County. She has experience in health care, community organization, and volunteer administration. Kristen also served as an AmeriCorps volunteer working for the National AIDS Fund in North Carolina. Kristen received her B.S. in Neurosciences from Vanderbilt University and her Masters in Social Work from the University of Tennessee.

Jennifer Oldham
Program Associate

Jennifer Oldham joined the Trust in May 2007 as the Program Associate. Jennifer provides administrative support to both the grant and programmatic initiatives of the Trust. Before coming to the Trust, Jennifer worked with 2-1-1 as an Information and Referral Specialist. Jennifer also has experience as a Crisis Counselor and as an educator for underserved and special needs students. Jennifer received her B.S. in Mass Communications from TSU and her Masters in Theological Studies from Vanderbilt Divinity School.

Matt Deeb
Vice President of Finance

Matt Deeb is the Accounting Officer at the Baptist Healing Trust. Matt is responsible for the accounting functions of the Trust. Matt has been with the Trust since 2004. Before coming to the Trust, he was a member of the Vanderbilt University Internal Audit department. Matt also has several years of experience in public accounting. Matt received B.S. degrees in Accounting and Finance from Florida State University and passed the CPA exam in 2000.

Dawn Meadows Thrasher
Executive Administrative Assistant

Dawn is the Administrative Assistant to the Staff at Baptist Healing Trust. She schedules meetings, processes orders of the Web site and does general office duties. She is a licensed Notary Public in the state of Tennessee. Prior to working at the Baptist Healing Trust she worked in the Legal Field.