Dr. Maria Del Rio Hoover

When thinking of the many women in the Junior League of Evansville that could be celebrated as a top 40 woman, Dr. Maria Del Rio Hoover came to mind.  Maria was born in Cuba and came to the United States as a child and was inspired be her pediatrician father. Maria currently works as a physician at Ascension St. Vincent in Evansville, IN.  She joined the hospital (then known as St. Mary's) after finishing a neonatal fellowship at the University of Miami, Jackson Memorial Hospital. Dr. Del Rio Hoover helped create the Center for Children at Ascension St. Vincent in 2005 which provides outpatient specialty services for children. Maria became its medical director in 2014.  
 
Maria is the co-chair of the Perinatal Substance Use Task Force for the Indiana Department of Health's Perinatal Quality Improvement Collaborative (IPQIC), a member of the Vanderburgh County Board of Health and a member of the NAS Hub Team Panel for the IU Project ECHO program. She currently serves on the Ascension St. Vincent Indiana Board of Directors, and the Indiana State Medical Association's Board of Trustees. 
 
Maria was also a large part in spearheading the effort to bring a Ronald McDonald House to Evansville and built on the campus on Ascension St. Vincent.  
 
In 2008, Maria won the top award given by the Junior League of Evansville, the Helen Klamer Phillp Award.  This award is given annually to a Sustaining Member who has made outstanding contributions to the community. Since then, Maria has continued to be involved as a Sustaining Member. She even jumped at the chance when a past Signature Project asked us to help decorate for the Holidays. Maria previously served as League President during the 1992-1993 League Year.  
 
Recently, Maria has been named as the 2024 IU School of Medicine Physician Mentor of the Year and was recognized by the local YWCA's Tribute to Achievement. She was the 2013 Rotary Civic Award Honoree.