Founder Profile
Wendell Cherry
Last reviewed: October 2026 · By Swet Parvadiya
Who is Wendell Cherry?
Wendell Cherry is a founder of Humana Inc., which was founded in 1961 with David A. Jones Sr..
- Company founded
- Humana Inc.
- Founded
- 1961
- Co-founders
- David A. Jones Sr.
Background
Wendell Cherry (1935-1991) was a Louisville lawyer who co-founded the company with David A. Jones Sr. in 1961 and served as Humana's president. He was known as the dealmaker and financier behind the company's expansion from nursing homes into hospitals.
Founding Story
Wendell Cherry and his law-school classmate David A. Jones Sr. each put in about $1,000 to open the Heritage House nursing home in Louisville in 1961. The venture grew into Extendicare, the largest nursing home chain in the U.S., and went public in 1968. Cherry helped lead the early-1970s move out of nursing homes and into hospitals, and the company was renamed Humana in 1974. He served as president until his death in 1991, shortly before Humana separated its hospitals from its health plan business.
Education: University of Kentucky College of Law. Wendell Cherry was born in 1935.