Senior Vice President of Development

You can contact John Leshney at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

John Leshney was named The V Foundation Senior Vice President of Development in August 2004. He directs the areas of annual giving, corporate giving, major gifts, endowment and the affiliates program for The V Foundation. His mission is to help fund the cures for cancer.

A graduate of both Xavier University and XU’s graduate school in history and political science, Leshney was awarded the Lyndon Baines Johnson Legislative Internship in 1979 with then-U.S. Representative Bill Gradison, which marked the beginning of his 10-year career in the United States Congress.

Leshney later served as the Chief Legislative Assistant for U.S. Representative Bob McEwen and oversaw the areas of national security, veterans issues, and health care legislation. In addition, he was responsible for the liaison activities with the White House during Ronald Reagan’s presidency. Leshney also received a dual appointment to the U.S. House of Representatives Veterans’ Affairs Committee staff where he served with distinction, receiving national awards for his service with American’s veterans.

Leshney, a native of Cincinnati, Ohio, retired from politics and returned to his home state in 1989 to pursue a new personal quest – funding the cures for cancer. Leshney joined the Hipple Cancer Research Center in Dayton, Ohio, as its first head of development and community relations. He successfully directed the fundraising and major giving programs, and initiated and organized the Center’s government relations program for cancer research at the state and federal levels for five years with Hipple Founder and President Dr. Martin J. Murphy. He was honored with the “President’s Award for Excellence” for his unswerving commitment to funding cancer research.

In 1995, Leshney was named the head of development at the Markey Cancer Center Foundation for the University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center, one of only a handful of privately built centers in the United States. In addition to managing the Markey Foundation’s annual fund and special fundraising events, he also successfully directed the $9.2 million campaign to build the Center’s first Cancer Facility for Women. More than $20 million dollars were raised during his tenure at Markey with an additional $20 million in planned gifts.

While residing in Lexington, Leshney was frequently sought after not only for his fund raising counsel, but also as a speaker for different professional and civic groups. He also served on the Development and Strategic Planning Committees during his tenure on the Lexington Catholic High School Board of Trustees.

John and his wife Barbara are parents to sons Sean (a US Navy veteran and law enforcement officer in Indiana) and Tim (currently serving a second tour as an Army Corporal with the Strategic Counter Insurgency Detachment in Iraq) and daughter Jennifer (a freshman at University of North Carolina/Charlotte).