Joe Checota, the chairman, chief executive officer and principal owner of Milwaukee-based Landmark Healthcare Facilities LLC, a developer of outpatient health care buildings, says he was a “work-obsessed nerd” when his future wife of six decades, Ellen McNamara Checota, first introduced him to the enriching nature of art, music, and theater.
On Thursday, the couple received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 10th annual BizTimes Media Nonprofit Excellence Awards program, for their support of cultural and educational institutions in Milwaukee.
Accepting the award for the philanthropic power couple, Joe Checota credited his wife for opening his eyes, not just to the impact that great art and culture can have on individual lives, but on the wider community.
“She taught me that diverse cultural landscapes are an important building block in the creation of successful communities – communities like Milwaukee that are a great place to live,” Checota said.
An artist in her own right, it was at Ellen’s prompting that the pair made their first cultural contribution to the Milwaukee community in 2016, donating $400,000 to the Milwaukee Art Museum.
In 2021, the Checotas increased that impact, with a $5 million contribution to the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra’s $139 million fundraising campaign to create the Bradley Symphony Center. The funding also helped build the MSO’s endowment, pay off pension liability and bolster its operating fund. In recognition of their gift, the Bradley Symphony Center includes the Ellen & Joe Checota Gallery and Ellen & Joe Checota Atrium.
In 2022, the couple set their sights on helping improve the lives of local residents through education, establishing a new scholarship program at Milwaukee Area Technical College (MATC). Funded by a $5 million two-for-one challenge gift from the couple, the Checotas agreed to contribute $1 million of their $5 million gift to MATC each time matching gift donors contributed $500,000 to support the Checota Scholarship Program. So far, the Checotas have contributed $4 million and 257 donors have contributed $2 million to the scholarship fund. When fully funded, the $7.5 million gift from the Checotas and the $2.5 million of 50% matching gifts from other donors will become the largest charitable gift in the 110-year history of MATC.
Then, Earlier this year the Milwaukee Repertory Theater announced a confidential gift from the Checotas towards The Milwaukee Rep’s $75 million fundraising effort to rebuild its downtown Milwaukee theater complex. The Checotas’ gift is the second-largest charitable contribution in the 69-year history of the Milwaukee Rep. In recognition of that gift, the new main stage of the Milwaukee Repertory Theater will be named the Ellen and Joe Checota Powerhouse Theater.
Gratitude and guidance
Speaking about those donations on Thursday, Joe Checota thanked the hundreds of companies, foundations, and individuals who had provided crucial matching funds to the Checota Scholarship fund, and credited his wife, who first suggested they create such a fund long before they had the means to do so.
“Ellen taught me that families that achieve financial success have an obligation to share their success with members of their community who require a leg up to build better lives for themselves and their families,” he said.
He also thanked Landmark Healthcare Facilities and its dedicated workforce, for feeding the “financial engine that enables” Ellen and him to make such gifts to the community.
But in the end, it is Ellen who deserves the lion’s share of the credit for the couples work and generosity, Joe Checota said.
“Ellen and I have found that recognition that comes relatively late in life, is very special recognition for the people who receive it,” he said. “I have searched for what I call true facts throughout my life, and here’s the true fact about this work: This award belongs to Ellen Catherine McNamara Checota.”
