October 2025 Common Ground Newsletter

October 20, 2025

Dear friends,

Today Common Ground Health-Rochester Regional Health Information Organization (RRHIO) is announcing upcoming changes to the organization’s leadership as Co-CEOs Wade Norwood and Marlene Bessette prepare for retirement.

We wanted you to hear it from us first. Wade will assume a full-time role as Chief Advancement and Government Relations Officer, focusing on the organization’s financial growth and fostering strategic community partnerships, as of Jan. 1, 2026. Marlene will continue as CEO until her retirement on March 31, 2026. Our organization’s board of directors has begun the search for a new CEO.

As a reminder, Rochester RRHIO and Common Ground combined in 2024, combining the RRHIO’s expertise providing a secure, quality-ensured health and social determinant information exchange with Common Ground’s data analysis, convening and community-engagement expertise.

Wade said: “While this new role is a major step toward my transition to full retirement, I’m not done yet. I will continue working to find and secure revenue sources for the organization and continue preaching from the rooftops to the community and to public officials about the need for our community to come together to address poverty to eliminate the significant health disparities that exist across our 14-county region.”

Marlene said: “When I took on the role of CEO at the RRHIO, my plan was that it would not be long term. I am pleased with what I have accomplished, first at the RRHIO and then working alongside Wade and our board of directors following the merger. Our joint organization is positioned to deliver innovative approaches to improving health and addressing disparities. We will assist and support the new CEO during the transition.”

Melissa Gardner, our board chair and executive vice president, chief population health engagement officer at Excellus BlueCross BlueShield, said: “Wade and Marlene are both to be celebrated for their tremendous careers. Our organization is stronger, and our community’s health delivery system works better, because of Wade and Marlene’s leadership. They have done a wonderful job over the past year of leading our organization, and what they have accomplished throughout their careers serves as a model for other human-service and business executives.”

Wade has held community leadership positions for more than three decades and serves on the New York State Board of Regents. He has been in management at Common Ground Health, the nonprofit health research and planning organization for the Rochester-Finger Lakes region, since 2006. He became CEO in 2018, leading the organization to become a more effective change agent for all Finger Lakes region residents.

Marlene was named CEO in August 2022 of the RRHIO, which provides a secure health and social determinant information exchange in 14 counties of the Finger Lakes and Southern Tier. She retired from Catholic Family Center in January 2022 after serving nine years as CEO and facilitating the merger of that organization with Catholic Charities Community Services. She has been recognized with multiple awards as a leader in the business and nonprofit community.

We will keep you posted on upcoming opportunities to celebrate the contributions of Marlene and Wade. We also invite you to share the job posting for the CEO position (when it is published) with anyone who would be a great fit for this position.

Thank you for your partnership,
Your friends at Common Ground Health-Rochester RHIO