Timothy A. Churchill, president of both Western Maine Health and Franklin Community Health Network, will retire at the end of the year, according to news releases issued from both groups Friday afternoon.

Churchill has been the leader of the health network for three years and Western Maine Health for more than 20. Both groups said they will begin the process of finding a candidate to replace Churchill, a Lewiston native.

“We’ve been very fortunate to have Tim’s vision and steady leadership these last three years,” said Clint Boothby, chairman of the Franklin Community board. “Tim has led us through a critical time, overseeing our integration into the MaineHealth system, including implementation of our new electronic medical record platform. We are very grateful to have had the benefit of his experience.”

Tom Morton, chairman of the Western Maine Health board, said the community has been “extraordinarily fortunate” to have a leader of Churchill’s caliber overseeing the delivery of health care in Norway.

“Tim creates an environment where people are excited to come to work every day and make a difference in the lives of our patients and the larger community,” Morton said.

Churchill, who has been the head of Western Maine Health in Norway for 23 years, was named interim leader of the Franklin Community Health Network in 2016 following the retirement of Rebecca Arsenault. In February 2018, the board decided to make Churchill its president on a permanent basis, sharing him with Western Maine.

According to the Friday announcement, Churchill’s retirement will go into effect Jan. 1 next year.

“The people who work at Franklin, as well as at Western Maine Health, do an extraordinary job providing great patient care and promoting health in their community despite the challenges faced by rural hospitals in today’s environment,” Churchill said. “I will miss working with them, but I know the people of the Farmington region will be well-served by this amazing team for many years to come.”

When he stepped in as Franklin Community’s leader in 2016, Churchill had been president of Western Maine Health and its flagship, Stephens Memorial Hospital, since 1996. Prior to that, he held various executive posts in the health care industry dating back to the 1980s.

His first leadership role was as CEO of St. Joseph’s Hospital in Philadelphia in the early 1990s. He has also served as president of the Osteopathic Medical Center of Philadelphia and president of Windber Medical Center in Windber, Pennsylvania. Born in Lewiston and raised in Waterville, he holds an MBA from the University of Maine and a bachelor’s degree from King’s College in Pennsylvania.

“As a leader, Tim has set the standard across our system,” said Rich Petersen, president of MaineHealth. “This is especially true when it comes to attracting and retaining top-notch physicians and other team members. People really enjoy working for the organizations he leads.”

Boothby said that his board, in consultation with leadership at MaineHealth, has decided to replace Churchill with a president who will oversee the  Franklin Community Health Network only. He said this does not diminish the value of working cooperatively with Western Maine and other MaineHealth organizations, but there remain challenges for the Franklin group that are best tackled by a leader who can be there full time.

Officials from Western Maine Health and Franklin Community said they will form search committees by April 30, and that they hope to hire new presidents by the end of the calendar year.

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