Friend of the Elderly

The Friend of the Elderly award is given annually to an individual or organization making a substantial and/or unique contribution to the health, housing, social, psychological, or spiritual quality of older adults’ lives.

Friend of the Elderly Awardees

Friend of the Elderly 2024

Tiena Johnson Hall
Executive Director
California Housing Finance Agency

Tiena Johnson Hall was appointed Executive Director of the California Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA) by Governor Gavin Newsom in August 2021. Before that, Johnson Hall was Senior Vice President and Manager of Community Development Finance for BBVA (now a member of PNC Bank) and had served on the CalHFA Board of Directors since 2014.

She has additional community development banking experience as Vice President and Community Development Manager at Bank of the West and Senior VP and Relationship Manager at U.S. Bank; local government experience as Director of Housing in the Major Projects Division of the Los Angeles Housing and Investment Department; and has worked as a project manager for the nonprofit developer Abode Communities.

She served for several years on the Angelus Plaza Advisory Commission

Johnson Hall served on the Board of Directors for the National Council of State Housing Boards from 2016 -2020 and was elected to the National Council of State Housing Agencies (NCSHA) Board of Directors in 2023.

RHF is pleased to present Tiena Johnson Hall with the 2024 Friend of the Elderly Award.

Congratulations to all of our past award recipients!

2023 – Dr. Barbara White and Ms. Patti LaPlace
2022 – Dr. Laverne R. Joseph, Former President and CEO, Retirement Housing Foundation
2020 – Scott P. Moore, Legal Specialist, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
2019 – Steve Protulis, President / CEO, Elderly Housing Development and Operations Corporation
2018 – Tom Slemmer, President / CEO (retired)
2017 – Jim Bowman, President & CEO, National Affordable Housing Trust
2016 – David Schless, President & CEO, American Senior Housing Association
2015 – Kristina Cook, Executive Director
2014 – Ellie Hollander, President & CEO, Meals on Wheels Association of America
2013 – Henry Cisneros, Former Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development
2012 – Jay Schochet and Richard Henken, Schochet Associates, Inc.
2011 – Larry Minnix, President, Leading Age
2010 – Thomas Gleason, Executive Director, Mass Housing
2009 – Jan Perry, Los Angeles Councilwoman
2008 – Carl A. Ballton, President & CEO, Union Bank of California Foundation
2007 – Tom Jenkins, Judge
2006 – Barney Frank, Congressman