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April 14, 2023

The Wellington Senior Living Administrator/Preceptor and Executive Director Share How They Got Their Start in Senior Living

Category: Senior Living

Author: Joanna Wesley, Executive Director and Erin Winstead, Administrator/Preceptor

Erin Winstead, Administrator/Preceptor

Senior living has certainly changed over the past decade. An industry that once provided very little hands-on care has blossomed into a wonderful option for older adults. It now provides varying levels of assistance with residents’ activities of daily living, while arranging many opportunities for socialization and community. I am fortunate to work for Arrow Senior Living leading The Wellington Senior Living team. I would like to share a little about my journey to becoming a senior living leader.

While my career in healthcare started almost a decade ago, my passion for helping others started at a very young age. When I was 12 years old, my grandmother was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. We all have our “person,” and my grandmother was my mine. Because we lived in the same town, I grew up spending more time at her home than I did my own. I would sit with her for hours listening to her tell me stories of her childhood, our familial ancestors, how she had a pilot’s license and loved to fly, and how she struggled and succeeded as a single mother in a time when that was very rare. I cherished the time that we had together. When she received her diagnosis, I moved in with her and became her caregiver when I wasn’t at school. This made our time together even more special and my passion for helping others blossom.

My career started in pediatrics, but I still felt a strong tug towards working with older adults, but was unsure as to which capacity. I went back to school and received degrees in sociology, public health, and healthcare administration to help me understand people, our society, and our healthcare system better. As I continued to grow in my career, I would see friends and mutual friends post on social media about working in senior living and I started carefully watching their posts and reading their stories. At the same time, my father was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and his disease progression became so rapid that I became his secondary caregiver. I loved being able to help care for him, listen to his stories, absorb his wealth of knowledge, and use my education to provide insight. After his passing a little more than a year ago I knew I needed to make the change in my career to feed my soul and live my passion.

While my career in senior living has just started, there are so many things that keep me in this field. I love walking into the community each morning and receiving wide-smiles and large waves from the residents. They always make me feel like they’ve been waiting for me all night to return. I love being able to troubleshoot and problem-solve with residents and their family members and the satisfaction of knowing that I’ve helped someone through something they may have felt was insurmountable fills my bucket and feeds my soul. I love when a resident randomly stops by my office to give me a hug or tell me they love me. I stay in senior living because I can sit with my residents and listen to their stories, hear about the amazing lives they lived and continue to live, and think fondly of the experiences I had growing up with my grandmother.

I have carefully watched the growth of Arrow Senior Living since its inception. I love that they strive to be leaders in this industry and work to provide a business model that is unique. They respect their residents and value their employees. They’re always finding creative ways to celebrate everyone within the community and have created a positive environment and culture.

I am new enough to the industry that I haven’t had the chance to read literature related to trends and forecasting. I do think that we’ll likely see more companies adopt similar business models to ours in which they remove the sterile, clinical aspect of senior living.

I would tell anyone considering a career in senior living management it is one of the most rewarding industries. If you are service-oriented and enjoy helping others, it’s a fantastic career.

Arrow Senior Living and I invite you to reach out and learn more about a career in senior living. Working in this industry can be incredibly rewarding and fulfilling. Whether you’re interested in caregiving, management, or another aspect of senior living, there are a wide variety of roles available that allow you to make a positive impact on the lives of older adults and their families.

Joanna Wesley, Executive Director

Senior living has certainly changed over the past decade. An industry that once provided very little hands-on care has blossomed into a wonderful option for older adults. It now provides varying levels of assistance with residents’ activities of daily living, while arranging many opportunities for socialization and community. I am fortunate to work for Arrow Senior Living leading The Wellington Senior Living team. I would like to share a little about my journey to becoming a senior living leader.

I worked in hospitals for many years, both general and children. When I left my position with at the hospital, I was looking for something different and started a private duty agency to care for older adults in their homes. My partner and I sold the business and that’s when I started in marketing and sales at a community that we had staffed daily, providing additional care for the residents.

The joy of bringing smiles to residents’ faces, and our ability to make a difference in how the residents and their families feel about senior living, is what keeps me in this industry.

Arrow Senior Living is known for how much they work to appreciate and inspire their people. In the coming months and years, we need to continue to grow and actively work on improving the culture for both residents and staff. This will allow us to continue recruiting top notch staff to provide the quality service and work culture that will set us apart from other residential communities and organizations.

If someone is considering a career in senior living management, they should spend a day at The Wellington Senior Living to witness the joy and camaraderie that is prevalent and see how we differ in our team approach with everything we do.

Arrow Senior Living and I invite you to reach out and learn more about a career in senior living. Working in this industry can be incredibly rewarding and fulfilling. Whether you’re interested in caregiving, management, or another aspect of senior living, there are a wide variety of roles available that allow you to make a positive impact on the lives of older adults and their families.

The Wellington Senior Living in Liberty, MO offers senior villas, independent senior apartments, assisted living, and memory care with a variety of services and a range of floor plan options. Amenities include restaurant dining, 24-hour bistro, concierge service, housekeeping, events and entertainment, personal care, transportation services, and more. Centrally located near Liberty Hospital with convenient access to major shopping centers and attractions, including Shoal Creek Golf Course, Historic Downtown Liberty, Stocksdale Park, and Martha Lafite Thompson Nature Sanctuary.

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