Mary C. Haddad, M. A., President

Mary C. Haddad is the President and Co-founder of the Louis S. and Mary C. Henninger Haddad Foundation, established in 1999. In her role, she has significantly contributed to various philanthropic and community organizations.

Mrs. Haddad serves on the Obici Healthcare Foundation Board, where she is Chair of the Governance Committee and a member of the Finance and Investment Committee. She also holds the position of Vice-Chair on the board. Additionally, she is a member of the Chesapeake Bay Academy Board’s Investment Committee and serves as Treasurer on the Organics Roots Academy Board. Mary chairs the Prison Angel Tree program at Oakland Christian United Church of Christ, providing holiday gifts to children of incarcerated parents and grandparents, symbolically from their incarcerated loved ones.

In her local community leadership roles, Mary was the first female President of the Suffolk Foundation for the 2021-2022 term, having previously served as Vice President in 2019-2020 and Chair of the Distribution Committee. She has chaired the Suffolk Foundation’s Women’s Impact Fund, served on the Chesapeake Bay Academy Governance and Nominating Committee, and led the Strategic Planning Committee and Community Life Center Development at Oakland Christian United Church of Christ. Mary has also been actively involved with WHRO Public Broadcasting Stations and ForKids, an organization addressing homelessness and poverty. As General Coordinator, she oversaw the creation of Fun Forest in Chesapeake, VA, which became the largest community-built, ADA-accessible playground on the East Coast at the time. She has chaired the Norfolk/Virginia Beach American Heart Association and co-chaired both the Heart Ball and the Children’s Hospital Ball with her husband, Lou Haddad.

In the realm of higher education and statewide service, Mary has held numerous positions, including Secretary, Chair of Academic Affairs, and Chair of Outstanding Faculty Awards for the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV). She has also served as Vice-Rector and Chair of Academic Affairs on Old Dominion University’s Board of Visitors, Secretary of Virginia’s Family & Children’s Trust Fund, Chair of Academic Affairs at Virginia Wesleyan University, and a member of ODU’s Women’s Initiative Network. Additionally, she contributed to the Virginia Governor’s Task Force on Cervical Cancer.

Before fully committing to her volunteer and philanthropic endeavors, Mary worked as a Senior Marketing Representative at Armada Hoffler and as Vice President of the affiliated Virginia Design and Art Center. She earned her undergraduate degree summa cum laude from Hampton University in 2009 and her M.A. in Organizational Leadership with a certification in Servant Leadership from Gonzaga University in 2014.

Mary’s contributions have been recognized with several awards, including the Local Hero Award from Bank of America, the Humanitarian Award from the National Committee for Community and Justice, the Safe Harbor Award from Programs and Places for Children, Woman of the Year from Hampton Roads Youth Center, the Volunteer Achievement Honorary from Volunteer Hampton Roads, the Chairman’s Award from the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce, and the Volunteer and Community Service Award from Outstanding Professional Women of Hampton Roads, among others.

Mary and her husband, Lou, take great pride in their most cherished accomplishment: raising their four adult children, alongside a large assortment of dogs, in their beloved home, Songwood.

Louis S. Haddad, Vice-president and Benefactor

Vice-president, Louis Haddad, is a Co-founder and the Benefactor of the Haddad Foundation.  Lou is President and CEO of Armada Hoffler Properties, one of the largest commercial real estate businesses in Virginia. (NYSE Symbol: AHH).  The company has participated in more than 25 public-private partnerships including its flagship local project, the Town Center of Virginia Beach.  Haddad led the company’s initial public offering and transition to a publicly traded REIT in 2013.  Since then, the company has tripled its equity market value to over $1.2 billion and has developed over $800 million of new projects.  The company’s holdings include 57 large-scale commercial assets.  Its operations span across seven mid-Atlantic states.  

Lou Haddad is widely recognized in Hampton Roads for his philanthropy and dedication to special needs children. He helped found the Louis & Mary Haddad Foundation for improving the lives of disadvantaged and at-risk children and is the Haddad Foundation’s main benefactor. Lou has also been active with several youth and medical charities including Big Brothers/Big Sisters, American Heart Association, Governor’s School for the Arts, Special Olympics, United Way and the March of Dimes.  Lou was honored to be inducted into the 2019 Greater Hampton Roads Junior Achievement Business Hall of Fame and was appointed to the University of Virginia’s Board of Visitors by Governor Northam the same year.  Due to Mr. Haddad’s influence, Armada Hoffler supported The Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia and the Eastern Shore, to help fill the gap that Farm Fresh Grocery left when it exited the market.  Lou repeatedly receives accolade in Virginia Business’ Power List and CoVaBiz; he has also been recognized by several awards and publications as one of the most influential leaders in Virginia. 

Lou and Mary agree that their most important accomplishment is as parents of four adult children, who they happily reared (with a large assortment of dogs) in their lovely home, Songwood.