Throughout his life and storied career, Jon Fine has always worked to create a “community of caring.”

Jon Fine is officially semi-retired, although you might not know it judging by the amount of time he spends volunteering. He currently sits on four nonprofit boards. But then, throughout his life and storied career — which includes over 18 years leading the United Way of King County as CEO and another three in a similar role for the Red Cross — Fine has always worked to create a “community of caring,” as he likes to call it.

“I think all of us have an opportunity and an obligation to contribute to our community,” says Fine. “Being associated with philanthropy and nonprofits is one of the best ways of doing that.”

But it’s his work championing the UW Medicine Neurosciences Institute (NSI) that led to him being recognized with the 2025 Ragen Volunteer Service Award. Named for the late Brooks G. Ragen, the Ragen Award honors volunteers who have made outstanding contributions toward advancing the mission of UW Medicine.

The award is well deserved. In addition to serving as chair of the NSI Council, he co-chaired The Benefit for Harborview Medical Center, a fundraising event that raised over $13 million to support Harborview Medical Center’s vital role in our region and advance neuroscience innovation.

For Fine, the connection to the NSI and philanthropy is also deeply personal.

A positive force in the community

When Fine’s son Daniel — then 29 and living in Argentina — began suffering headaches and nausea, local doctors discovered a brain tumor the size of a small orange pressing against his brain stem. It was a life-threatening condition requiring urgent, complex surgery.

Fine and his wife, Paula, searched for the best care and found it at UW Medicine. Daniel flew home, was admitted to UW Medical Center – Montlake and underwent an eight-hour surgery led by Manuel Ferreira Jr., MD, PhD. While the surgery was successful, recovery was arduous: a month of intensive rehabilitation to regain basic functions, followed by two years of therapy to restore vision and balance issues.

But thanks to his UW Medicine care team, Daniel reclaimed the active life he once knew. And Fine reached out to see if he could lend his fundraising expertise to the NSI.

“I believe strongly that it’s important for people to help others, to give back, to be positive forces in the community in multiple ways,” says Fine. “And to me, when you’re looking at institutions that do worthwhile things, UW Medicine is at the top of the list.”

Giving back is an ethos that’s deeply rooted in Fine’s family history. His great-uncle Harry Greenstein was a social worker and administrator who worked to improve people’s lives, particularly refugees and immigrants, and as the advisor on Jewish affairs to the U.S. Army, served as the point person for the liberation and closure of the German concentration camps after World War II.

“It was an extremely difficult, responsible, important role in our family that was always admired and revered,” says Fine. “Following in his footsteps is an honor for me.”

The NSI gladly accepted Fine’s offer to help.

“Jon has marked his life with a passion for service, and his passion has quite simply revolutionized our efforts to engage the community in the neurosciences and human brain health,” says Thabele “Bay” Leslie-Mazwi, MD, chair of UW Medicine’s Department of Neurology.

Richard G. Ellenbogen, MD, FACS, chair of the Department of Neurological Surgery, agrees. “We are so grateful and honored to work with him.”

Philanthropy’s important role in improving health

Fine is on a mission to help spread the word about the NSI and its role as a leader in neurosciences for our region and beyond. “When I tell people what the NSI is doing, the reaction I often get is, wow, I didn’t know that,” he says.

Home to one of the largest and most experienced groups of neurologists and neurosurgeons in the Pacific Northwest, the NSI can treat more than 500 brain, spine and nervous system disorders. It also engages in cutting-edge research and educates future neurologists and neurosurgeons. This allows the NSI to translate lab research into new therapies for patients and use feedback from clinicians to inform the research. Residents and fellows are then trained in the latest therapies for a wide array of neurological conditions, extending the impact further.

“The NSI is doing incredibly valuable work in multiple ways and for multiple diseases,” Fine notes. “It’s going to pave the way for the future to be much better for people who are experiencing these neurological issues, and it helps patients on a daily ongoing basis. I think that combination of people, research and programs is just remarkable.”

As a lifelong philanthropist, he understands the crucial role that donors play in advancing this work. “Philanthropy provides catalytic funding that can be oriented toward innovation and trying new things or providing flexible funding that might not be possible through a grant.”

Which is one reason he wanted to co-chair The Benefit for Harborview Medical Center. Held in November 2024, it was the largest benefit hosted by UW Medicine Advancement in a decade, with 400 excited guests filling the event space at Fremont Studios.

“I think everybody in this community should be proud of Harborview and UW Medicine,” Fine says. “Through The Benefit, we gave people the opportunity to come together in one space, hear about the important work they’re doing and support it as a community. And everyone really stepped up.”

Fine continues his leadership role on the NSI council, and this semi-retired philanthropist is now chairing a multimillion-dollar campaign to raise money for the Institute for Prostate Cancer Research, a joint venture of Fred Hutch and UW Medicine.

It’s all part of his family legacy — and lifetime endeavor — to help foster a community of caring now and for years to come.

“I’m inspired by the great work that’s going on at the NSI,” says Fine. “I’m inspired by the talented people that are involved. But really, at the top of the list, I’m inspired by the help that we’re giving to patients, the community and the research that’s going to make this a better world.”

Written by Nicole Beattie