Marilynn Duker

Marilynn Duker

Co-Chair, Brightview Senior Living

Marilynn Duker stepped back from her longtime leadership role last year as CEO of Brightview Senior Living, but she remains plugged into the company she led for 40 years as its co-chair with Arnold Richman.

Under Duker, who was CEO from 2017 to 2022, Brightview grew to build, own and operate 45 senior living communities with more than 5,000 associates in Maryland and seven other East Coast states. It opened its first senior living community in Maryland in 1999.

“I will still have ownership in the company, still be on our investment committee and participate in major decisions for the business,” Duker told Senior Housing News in 2022. She said she has seen Brightview “evolve and change a lot over the years. It’s been an amazing ride, and far exceeded any expectations I could possibly have had.”

Duker has a bachelor’s degree in urban studies from The College of Wooster and a master’s degree in city planning and real estate finance from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Duker joined Brightview’s predecessor company, The Shelter Group, in 1982 as executive vice president. She was president from 2008 to 2017, during its transition to Brightview.

Duker told Senior Housing News last year that she is proudest of the fact that the senior living company has built and maintained a strong culture over the years.

“We certainly could have grown more rapidly, but we just didn’t think we could do so and maintain the culture,” she said. “We are passionate about our focus on associate engagement and making sure our pay and benefits are competitive, but even more importantly, on assuring we have many pathways for growth and opportunity for our associates at Brightview.”

This profile is part of The Daily Record's Health Care Power List for 2023. Information used in this profile was sourced from the honoree. See the full list at thedailyrecord.com.