Aegis Living welcomes new president and appoints other executives
Sandra Preyale has been promoted to president at Aegis Living, Bellevue, WA. Additionally, Lee Kaufmann has been promoted to senior vice president of human resources, and Howard Jacobs has been promoted to chief operating officer.
In her new role, Preyale will focus on supporting business growth and development for the company, as well as overseeing operations and strategies for new properties in development, including two new communities projected to open later this year.
Preyale previously was Aegis’ chief people officer for four years, a position in which she oversaw recruitment and retention strategies. She has more than 30 years of experience as an executive leader in global human resources.
Kaufmann has worked in Aegis communities for five years and has served as vice president of operations for the past few months. In his new role, he will oversee hiring, leading and retaining employees as Preyale transitions her role as chief people officer.
Jacobs officially will start in his new position in March. Currently, he is a regional vice president for Aegis. Prior to working at Aegis, Jacobs was a regional vice president and COO at Provenance Hotels.
Jewish HomeLife promotes Jeffrey Gopen to CEO and president
Jeffrey A. Gopen will become CEO and president of Jewish HomeLife, Atlanta, in April. Currently chief operating officer, he will succeed Harley Tabak, who is retiring at the end of this year.
The two leaders will continue in their current roles until April, and Tabak will remain as CEO emeritus through the end of 2022 to provide for ongoing coaching and the transfer of knowledge to the company’s leadership team.
Neelam Rahatekar, current chief financial officer of the company, also will take on the COO role prior to Gopen beginning his new position. Rahatekar has served the organization for 16 years and will be supported by a newly created controller position that will assume many CFO duties.
Gopen is a clinician and licensed nursing home administrator. Tabak has led Jewish HomeLife through a period of growth that has taken what was once a small skilled nursing home to a full network of nine senior care services and residential communities supporting every stage of the aging journey for people of all faiths.
Synchrony Health Services welcomes Randall Bufford as president and CEO
Randall Bufford, founder of Trilogy Health Services, will lead the organization’s ancillary services subsidiary, Synchrony Health Services, Louisville, KY, as president and CEO.
In this position, Bufford will expand the existing business, moving into new lines of service and leveraging technology and service line collaboration to create value-added outcomes for both existing and new partners. He also will take a leadership role in raising capital from third-party investors to fund the company’s expansion plans.
Synchrony Pharmacy (formerly PCA Pharmacy), Synchrony Wellness Pharmacy and Synchrony Rehabilitation have been brought under the Synchrony Health Services umbrella. Also part of the division will be Synchrony Lab Services, launching in the second quarter.
Integral Senior Living appoints new regional vice president of operations
Lori Silinskie has joined Integral Senior Living, Carlsbad, CA, as regional vice president of operations.
In her new position, Silinskie will oversee the operations of several ISL communities. She joins the company with more than three decades of experience in the senior housing field, having worked for both public and private organizations. Silinskie has led and managed senior living portfolios as large as 7,000 units and a quarter-billion dollars in annual revenue.
She most recently led her own company, providing support to private owners and equity firms with deal evaluation via acquisition transition as well as operational and sales strategic intervention and positioning for divestiture.
Genacross Lutheran Services appoints Jeff Barror as director of operations
Jeff Barror has joined Genacross Lutheran Services as director of operations.
In this capacity, Barror will oversee the ongoing operations and development of the senior care line of service. The service line includes the Genacross care campuses, which provide independent living, assisted living, skilled nursing and rehabilitation.
Barror has two decades of experience in the senior living field, where he has served in areas such as admissions, marketing, single-site operations and multi-site operations.
He holds an undergraduate degree in public relations from the University of Toledo and became a licensed nursing home administrator after finishing coursework at Ohio State University.
Oakmont Senior Living hires Sam El-Rabba as executive director of new community
Sam El-Rabba has joined Oakmont Senior Living, Irvine, CA, as executive director of Oakmont of Agoura Hills. The community is under development and projected to open soon.
El-Rabba is an experienced senior living executive with a background in luxury hospitality. Before joining Oakmont, he worked as general manager at Balboa Bay Resort and Club as well as a hotel manager of Meritage Resort and Spa.
El-Rabba holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Arizona.
Beacon Hill Retirement Community names Dan Bannon executive director
Dan Bannon has joined Lifespace Communities, Chicago, as executive director of the Beacon Hill retirement community in Lombard, IL.
Before joining the company, Bannon was executive director at Marian Village and Franciscan Village in the Chicago area.
He has a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of Saint Francis in Joliet, IL.
LeadingAge Florida hires Rhanda McKnown as director of affordable housing
Rhanda McKnown has returned to LeadingAge Florida, Tallahassee, as director of affordable housing. She began her career in housing with the organization.
McKnown comes from the North Tampa Housing Development Corp., where she was a local contract specialist.
McKnown has almost two decades of experience in many facets of the housing industry and spent the past 15 years conducting management and occupancy reviews under the Performance Based Contract Administration contract in Florida. She also previously was director of the Affordable Housing Study Commission.
McKnown has an undergraduate degree from Florida State University.
ATI Advisory hires Fred Bentley to lead post-acute care provider portfolio
Fred Bentley has been hired by Washington, D.C.-based research and advisory services firm ATI Advisory to lead its post-acute care provider portfolio. In this capacity, Bentley will concentrate on healthcare delivery and payment innovation across the aging services continuum.
Before joining ATI, Bentley was managing director in Alavere Health’s Center for Healthcare Transformation. In this role, he focused on Medicare and Medicaid payment and delivery system innovation and provided strategic support to health systems, health plans and long-term care and post-acute organizations.
MP&F Strategic Communications announces Jennifer Brantley as managing partner
Jennifer Brantley has been named managing partner of MP&F Strategic Communications, Nashville, TN. She succeeds Alice Chapman, who passed away unexpectedly in November.
Brantley joined the company as an intern in 1992 and became partner in 2017. She works with clients across the Southeast in a variety of industries, including senior living, healthcare, insurance and public and private utilities.
MP&F previously announced its next generation of leaders, including partners Chapman, Brantley and Mary Elizabeth Davis, as part of a long-term succession strategy.
LW Consulting hires new CEO
Harriet Wall will assume the position of CEO at LW Consulting, Harrisburg, PA.
As CEO, she will have full ownership of the company. As part of this transition, Lisa Wilt will withdraw her ownership and move into partial retirement.
Wall has almost 30 years of experience, including helping clients navigate Medicare and Medicaid payment issues, evaluating the effectiveness of compliance programs and assessing risk. She has an MBA from Harvard Business School.
Transcend Strategy Group welcomes Courtney Penn
Courtney Penn has joined Transcend Strategy Group, Toledo, OH, as client growth lead.
In her new role at the growth consulting firm for senior care companies, Penn will collaborate with clients on the development and implementation of multiyear growth plans to fuel revenue and census growth as well as cut turnover.
Penn has almost two decades of experience in the senior care field. She comes to Transcend from the Association for Home & Hospice Care of North Carolina, the managing entity of the South Carolina Home Care & Hospice Association. For nine years there, she held progressive leadership roles overseeing the association’s branding, marketing, communications, events, affinity programs, public relations, social media presence and digital engagement. Other experience includes hospice branch manager and director of a skilled private-duty agency.
Genesis Healthcare board of directors welcomes Gerry Adest
Gerry Adest has joined the Genesis Healthcare Board of Directors, Kennett Square, PA. Former board member Robert “Bob” H. Fish left the board effective Jan. 1.
Adest is a practicing certified public accountant and industry consultant with more than 25 years of experience in long-term care. He has been a partner at Martin Friedman & Co. since 2018 and was a partner at Loeb & Trooper LLP from 2010 to 2017.
Adest graduated cum laude from Brooklyn College and is a member of the AICPA.
Sunshine CEO Luis Serrano joining Texas Business Leadership Council
Luis Serrano, CEO of Sunshine Retirement Living, Austin, TX, has joined the Texas Business Leadership Council.
The Texas Business Leadership Council is a statewide network of CEOs and senior business executives who embrace a long-term vision of a flourishing state in a competitive business environment.
Recently, Serrano moved to Austin to be more centrally located to the company’s independent living, assisted living, transitional assisted living and memory care communities, which span 18 states. In Texas, the company currently operates four communities, including Clairmont Retirement Community, Continental Retirement Community, Brook Ridge Retirement Community and Gardens at Brook Ridge Assisted Living and Memory Care in Pharr.
American Association of Service Coordinators announces new chair and officer
The American Association of Service Coordinators, Powell, OH, has announced new leadership for its board of directors and acknowledged a longstanding member’s service.
Beth Southorn has been named chair of the AASC board of directors. A leader in the social services industry for more than three decades, she is executive director of LifeSTEPS, a social services provider in affordable housing serving 36,000 homes in California.
On the AASC board, Southorn succeeds John Diel, senior adviser at Embrace Living Communities. Diel was chair for six years and will continue to be an AASC board member.
Natasha Ofosu, senior director of resident services at Volunteers of America National Services, also has joined the board. Ofosu has more than 15 years of experience in the field and provides national oversight for VOANS’ multi-million dollar service coordinator program.
The board has also acknowledged the service of Donna Thurmond, vice president of resident services and programs for Volunteers of America. Thurmond retired after almost two decades of service and, during her tenure, she served on the AASC board of directors’ executive committee as secretary and, more recently, as treasurer.
Two officers also have been selected by the board.
Linda Coleman, vice president of resident services at HumanGood, was chosen to serve as treasurer. She has more than 20 years of experience in the housing industry and is a certified professional of occupancy as well as an accredited national housing management specialist. Coleman has a certificate in mediation for conflict resolution and a professional service coordinator certificate. She holds an undergraduate degree in social science with a concentration in business and social work from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.
Jennifer Truppa is the director of social services and quality assurance at Embrace Living Communities. Truppa was selected to serve as the board’s secretary. She has 18 years of experience in affordable housing and resident services and has a certificate of completion in gerontology from the Ohio State University. She also went to Bradley and Lewis Universities, where her coursework focused on nursing and political science programs.
