From left, Martin H. Klein, president and CEO of Seashore Gardens; Terri White, chair of the Board of Trustees of LeadingAge New Jersey & Delaware; and Jim McCracken, president and CEO of LeadingAge.

LeadingAge New Jersey & Delaware, a statewide association for nonprofit senior care organizations, presented Seashore Gardens Living Center President and CEO Martin H. Klein with the prestigious President’s Award. The award recognizes a distinguished career of service and achievement in the field of aging and is only bestowed periodically.

For more than half a century, Klein has led the charge to enrich elder lives in South Jersey and beyond. Whether he is at the helm of Seashore Gardens Living Center, fundraising for the Seashore Gardens Foundation, advocating for senior care legislation, or teaching the next generation of caregivers, Klein continues to make a difference.

He was instrumental in spearheading the assisted living movement in New Jersey and helped to formulate the original standard for assisted living regulations. He also was a founding faculty leader of Assisted Living Training Associates, an organization that provides leadership training and guides assisted living policies and procedures for assisted living homes.

As the leader of a nonprofit home, Klein was integrally involved in associations related to nonprofit, mission-drive care. He served on the board and as chairman of the New Jersey Association of Nonprofit Homes & Services, now known as LeadingAge. He continues to serve in roles that enrich elder lives, including as treasurer of Seashore Gardens Foundation Board of Directors.


Nanette LoBiondo Galloway

Award winning journalist covering news, events and people of Atlantic County for more than 20 years.