RANCHO CUCAMONGA, CA – At a time when communities across the country are reacting to a crisis of economic hardship, polarization, and poor health, some leaders are innovating to create more just, healing, and sustainable communities grounded in health and well-being. WE in the World and Hold.Health are proud to recognize Jaime Wesolowski for his leadership in creating community conditions for intergenerational well-being in Texas.
As President and Chief Executive Officer of Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc., Wesolowski was awarded the Dr. Somava Saha Better Ancestor Award on April 30, 2026, by Hold.Health at its Annual Conference in Rancho Cucamonga, California. The award recognizes the courage and clarity of his efforts to create a generational foundation for Texans and communities facing the greatest barriers to health and well-being.
The Dr. Somava Saha Better Ancestor Award honors leaders who have transformed experiences of both personal and witnessed hardship to change systems that create the conditions for all to be well.
“Jaime’s leadership reflects the spirit of this award because he embodies the courage to learn and grow, especially in the face of pain and challenge,” said Dr. Somava Saha, Chief Executive Officer of WE. “After facing cancer, he not only became a champion for assuring access to cancer care and research with the American Cancer Society, but he also committed to using the remainder of his career to create meaningful generational change in Texas. As CEO of Methodist Healthcare Ministries, he could see that the incredible work of providing access to healthcare in the poorest communities in Texas was not enough because health and life outcomes were worsening. He engaged the Board and his leadership team in a courageous strategy to address the underlying conditions that were leading people to experience poor health in the first place.”
Methodist Healthcare Ministries has advanced this work in tangible, community-grounded ways:
- Advancing living wages for all MHM employees.
- Using a sliding-fee scale based on income, household size, and ability to pay in its primary care clinics. No one is denied service based on inability to pay, nor are debts collected.
- Investing more than $200 million in 2026 while partnering with nearly 200 community organizations to expand access to care and advance community-driven solutions that strengthen the conditions that shape daily life.
- Making investments in digital equity in South Texas to support broadband and telehealth approaches that help close the digital divide.
- Supporting long-term initiatives that build civic capacity for community members to lead change, including Prosperemos Juntos | Thriving Together.
- Piloting strategies to address generational poverty by strengthening knowledge, behaviors, and opportunities through financial information, education, and coaching, along with capital and asset building to develop financial capability and security.
These efforts are helping to shift how health is created in Texas, not just through care, but by investing in the conditions that allow people and communities to live healthy, connected, and hopeful lives.
“This work has always been about creating the conditions for well-being in the communities we serve,” said Wesolowski. “We have learned that improving health means investing in the conditions that support people to live with hope, purpose, and connection, and doing that work alongside community. All of us can play a role in that.”
Wesolowski’s work reflects a commitment to moving from short-term solutions toward long-term, community-driven change, creating the conditions where communities across South Texas can thrive today and for generations to come.
About WE in the World and Hold.Health
WE in the World advances a world of mutual abundance freed from systemic injustice, in partnership with those most affected.
Hold.Health supports changemakers and leaders in the health of the public. As a network of networks, it brings people together to advance just and equitable health and healthcare, strengthen relationships, and take action on the underlying causes of poor health conditions.
Media Contact
Somava Saha
somava.saha@weintheworld.org
617-413-7448
Follow this work as it continues to unfold across communities and regions. Learn more about efforts to advance health, well-being, and equity at www.weintheworld.org.
