Retired LCS President and CEO Stan G. Thurston dies
Retired LCS President and CEO Stan Thurston, 74, recently passed away after a battle with Alzheimer’s disease.
“Stan Thurston was a major contributor to the profession during his career with the Weitz Company and LCS,” American Seniors Housing Association President David Schless said. “He was as graceful as he was effective, and Stan’s legacy lives on at Life Care Services and with a wide array of professionals who have been touched directly or indirectly by his leadership.”
Thurston was inducted into the ASHA Senior Living Hall of Fame in 2018.
He was the driving force behind Des Moines, IA-based Life Care Services for 30 years, leading the organization’s growth and diversification. He led its development division and oversaw the operations management division before becoming president and CEO in 1995.
One of his innovations was the creation of the 90% refundable entrance fee contract for continuing care retirement communities, which significantly expanded the market for potential residents. He also worked with ASHA’s legislative team to guide bills that changed the federal tax code to protect CCRC residents by permanently eliminating imputed interest penalties on CCRC entrance fees.
He retired in 2006.
Westmont Living names Jason Ballow chief financial officer
Jason Ballow is the new chief financial officer at La Jolla, CA-based Westmont Living.
Ballow has 20 years of experience in finance and commercial real estate and joined the company in November. He formerly was vice president of development for Dallas-based Trammell Crow Residential, where he was responsible for entitlement and development of multifamily properties. He also was CFO at Anderson Drilling, a deep foundation and earth retention contractor.
Ballow began his public accounting career with KPMG. He holds a CPA license and also is a real estate broker.
Legacy Senior Living promotes Jason Gibson to vice president of operations
Jason Gibson has been promoted to vice president of operations at Cleveland, TN-based Legacy Senior Living, expanding the scope of his role to oversee the company’s 14 senior living communities across the Southeast.
Gibson joined Legacy Senior Living as an operations specialist and most recently was regional director of operations.
Legacy Senior Living specializes in independent living, assisted living and Alzheimer’s care services.
Landis Communities names Dale Weaver vice president of technology
Dale Weaver has been named the first vice president of technology/chief technology officer at Lititz, PA-based Landis Communities.
He will be a member of the leadership team and will provide strategic leadership and support of technology use throughout the company.
Weaver joins the organization from Brethren Village, where he first was director of technology and more recently was vice president of facilities and technology. Prior to that, he worked for Siemens Medical Solutions.
Dominion Senior Living names Rick Kral as vice president of wellness
Rick Kral has been named vice president of wellness at Knoxville, TN-based Dominion Senior Living.
Kral comes to Dominion with more than 10 year of senior living experience. He led wellness divisions in vice president and had regional roles, including divisional vice president of care services with Enlivant, vice president of clinical services and director of risk at Vanguard Healthcare, and regional director of clinical services at Life Care Centers of America.
Kral developed tools based on evidence-based research that provides an understanding of disease-specific care pathways to enhance care staff skill sets, along with innovative customer service programs. He will support strategic wellness initiatives; develop and oversee the planning, direction and implementation of all wellness programming, policies and procedures; and ensure the administration and execution of all community wellness goals.
Solvere Senior Living names Lori Silinskie regional vice president
Lori Silinskie has been named a regional vice president at St. Petersburg, FL-based management operations senior living company Solvere Living.
Silinskie has more than 30 years of experience in the senior living sector. Before Solvere, she owned her own senior housing management and consulting firm, providing development, operations and sales support to developers, investors and owners. Prior to that, she served in various operator roles for some of the country’s largest providers.
Silinskie is licensed in assisted living in three states, possesses both a real estate and community association manager license, and is trained in the Teepa Snow Positive Approach to Care dementia program.
Silinskie is an active volunteer in feeding Atlanta’s homeless community through With Love Global, supporting foster families with meals through Live the Promise, and supporting children with one-on-one tutoring and crafts at an elementary school virtual learning lab.
Claiborne Senior Living adds to management team
Hattiesburg, MS-based Claiborne Senior Living announced the addition of Cory Rogers as regional director of operations and Amber Thomas as regional nurse consultant to its corporate management team.
Rogers will be responsible for communities in Mississippi, Georgia and Louisiana. He comes to Claiborne Senior Living from Enlivant Senior Living, where he oversaw management of 12 to 16 assisted living communities in Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
Thomas has almost a decade of management experience in the healthcare field. Before joining Claiborne, she was regional director of resident care and nursing at Cedarhurst Senior Living, where she supervised resident care and nursing for 10 communities in Georgia and Florida. Past experience includes time at Atria Buckhead in Atlanta, Arbor Terrace and Camelot Brookside in Jennings, LA.
Ohio Living appoints divisional executive directors
Columbus, OH-based Ohio Living has appointed two divisional executive directors, Leslie Belfance and Dean Palombaro, who will manage operating responsibilities at its 12 life plan communities.
Belfance will provide leadership to Ohio Living Westminseter Thurber, Cape May, Quaker Heights, Dorothy Love, Mount Pleasant and Llanfair. She joined Ohio Living in 2002 as an administrator and has held an array of leadership roles, most recently serving as executive director at Ohio Living Westminster-Thurber in Columbus.
Palombaro will oversee Ohio Living Breckenridge Village, Vineyard at Catawba, Swan Creek, Rockynol, Lake Vista and Sarah Moore. He joined Ohio Living in 2013 as an administrator and most recently was executive director at Ohio Living Breckenridge Village in Willoughby.
The two will be responsible for supporting, expanding and strengthening Ohio Living’s mission in these markets and new ones.
Sonata Senior Living appoints Stacy Clark as campus executive director at Sonata East at Viera
Stacy Clark, RN, has been appointed campus executive director for Sonata East at Viera, an independent living facility slated to open this summer in Melbourne, FL, Florida-based Sonata Senior Living announced.
Clark will direct and oversee operations, strategic planning, recruiting and training across all departments and disciplines while assisting and collaborating to provide support and clinical guidance to the existing leadership team at Sonata Viera.
Clark is pursuing her master’s degree in nursing for leadership and management from Western Governors University.
Spruce Point names Billie Wingfield senior executive director
Billie Wingfield has been appointed senior executive director at Spruce Point Assisted Living and Memory Care in Florence, OR. She now oversees Spruce Point’s day-to-day operations, including nursing, maintenance, dining and personnel services.
Wingfield has more than two decades of related leadership experience in senior care. Most recently, she was the executive director of Fox Hollow Residential Care in Eugene, OR, a sister facility to Spruce Point, also operated by Nightingale Healthcare, a family-owned healthcare management company.
“She’s been a member of our executive team for nearly four years,” said Pete Wolkin, chief operations officer for Nightingale Healthcare.
Wingfield was trained on-site for all her roles, including caregiver (resident assistant) and resident care coordinator, among others. She is working toward obtaining a healthcare administration degree.
Friendship names Amanda Joines director of dining services
Amanda Joines has been appointed director of dining services at Salem Terrace at Harrogate, Roanoke, VA-based Friendship announced.
After serving in the U.S. Air Force as a munitions systems specialist, Joines pursued her passion for food and serving others through the culinary arts program at Johnson & Wales University. She has degrees in entrepreneurship and service management, with a specialization in restaurant and hospitality management.
Immanuel names Emily Tonniges as director of its community foundation
Emily Tonniges has joined Omaha, NE-based Immanuel as director of the Immanuel Community Foundation. She will oversee funds that annually support retirement community residents, Immanuel Pathways PACE (Programs of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly) participants and employees.
The foundation supports capital improvement, programming, special projects and more. In her new role, Tonniges will work with Immanuel’s Vision Foundation, a grant program that has provided more than $11 million to community organizations.
Tonniges has been involved with area organizations including Big Brothers Big Sisters, Omaha Performing Arts, Papillion La Vista Community Theatre, Sarpy County Chamber of Commerce, Sarpy CASA, Voices for Children and others.
The Immanuel Community Foundation supports the organization’s mission of Christ-centered service. Two of its key programs include the Resident Assistance Fund and the Helping Hands Assistance Fund for residents, participants and employees.
White Horse Village adds four to management team
Newtown Square, PA-based White Horse Village has announced four new additions to its management team.
Holly Jones was named senior director of human resources. She has experience in the nonprofit industry. Before White Horse Village, she was the senior human resources manager for Impact Services, where she managed a department serving 150 employees in five locations.
Jones guided Impact Services through the initial stages of the pandemic by supporting employees with information about safety precautions, benefits and personal health questions, and started a wellness initiative for employees working remotely. She is a certified human resources professional.
Shireen Kline was named director of sales and marketing. She previously worked for Hilton Hotel & Resources as a sales manager at the DoubleTree by Hilton in Philadelphia Center City, and director of sales and marketing at the DoubleTree by Hilton in Wilmington, DE, and Philadelphia.
Tonya Costley-Stilts was named director of resident life. She joins White Horse Village from the Masonic Village at Burlington, where she was director of reticent services. She was responsible for the independent living residents, spirituality, volunteers, the thrift store, wellness, mail, salon services and team appreciation.
Costley-Stilts is the recipient of the Innovative Award from LeadingAge and the Volunteer of the year from New Jersey Governors. She is a certified assisted living administrator.
Siobhan Scardina was named assistant dining services director. She has more than 15 years of experience in food service and retail.
LW Consulting expands with hiring of Annette Sanders and Seth Anthony
Harrisburg, PA-based LW Consulting, a provider of compliance and consulting solutions across the healthcare delivery spectrum, has named Annette Sanders as a senior consultant and Seth C. Anthony as marketing and business development manager.
Sanders, who joined the firm in November, has more than 30 years of experience in the healthcare industry. She specializes in compliance, quality improvement, education and improvement in long-term care nursing.
A registered nurse, Sanders has served in multiple roles throughout her career, including clinical and quality oversight, risk mitigation, regulatory compliance and financial compliance. She also performs audits to assist facilities with regulatory compliance and survey performance through COVID-19 focused surveys, regulatory mock surveys and compliance reviews.
She is a certified legal nurse consultant and a member of the American Society for Health Care Risk Management and the National Alliance of Certified Legal Nurse Consultants.
Anthony also joined the team in the fall. He will support the firm’s revenue goals through new opportunities for long-term partnerships and managing the public image of the business.
Before joining LW Consulting, Anthony led the sales and marketing efforts of a full-service architectural firm with a focus on senior living. He held a similar role with Holleran Consulting, a national consulting firm focused on delivering business intelligence to aging services providers. He also held marketing and communications leadership positions with Varsity branding and the Masonic Villages of Pennsylvania.
REES names Chris Muder a senior living leader
Chris Muder has been named a senior living leader at Oklahoma City-based architecture, planning and interior design firm REES. In this role, he will oversee best practices, design and client development in the senior living market.
Muder has more than 15 years of experience in planning, designing and managing projects, with the past 12 years devoted to senior living. He joined REES in 2017 as a project manager and recently was promoted to senior associate.
Paul Griffin inducted into Forbes Real Estate Council
Paul E. Griffin III, founder and CEO of Calabasas, CA-based senior housing developer Griffin Living, has been inducted into Forbes Real Estate Council.
Griffin was selected by a review committed based on the depth and diversity of his experience. Criteria for induction includes a track record of growth metrics as well as personal and professional achievements and honors.
Griffin has produced more than $4 billion of value with his real estate development companies. He was honored as Habitat for Humanity’s Builder of the Year (Hammer of Hope) and the Building Industry Association’s Builder of the Year. He serves on the board for the UCLA Ziman Center for Real Estate.
Allbridge names Todd Johnstone as CEO
Todd Johnstone has been named CEO of Raleigh, NC-based Allbridge, a technology solutions provider to the hospitality and senior living industries. He succeeds Dave O’Connell, who will continue as a member of the company’s board of directors.
Johnstone brings extensive senior executive experience in the managed services industry, most recently as CEO of Global Knowledge. He also was president of Convergys, senior vice president at Avaya and a senior executive at General Electric.
ERDMAN announces leadership changes
Madison, WI-based ERDMAN announced that its former CEO, Brian Happ, will assume the role of chairman, and Rustin Becker, former president and chief operating officer, has been promoted to president and CEO.
Rustin’s promotion was a leadership transition that had been planned for several years. He has been with the firm for 20 years in a variety of roles.
David Lubar, CEO of Lubar & Co. and ERDMAN’s principal owner, said that Happ led ERDMAN through uncertainties and changes in the healthcare market over the past 10 years and that he positioned the company for sustained growth.
EMJ announces top appointments
EMJ Construction has announced several appointments. Holly Bischoff has been named chief financial officer, Jack Brown has been named vice president of construction for EMJ Dallas, and Lance Gopffarth has been named executive vice president of construction risk.
Bischoff will be responsible for the overall fiscal functions of EMJ and its subsidiaries and related companies. She will continue to work with the executive leadership team to establish long-range goals, strategies, plans and policies while aligning them with the overall mission, strategy and vision of EMJ.
She will oversee the department’s leadership team, internal and external accounting operations and procedures, including preparation of budgets, financial reports, and tax and audit functions.
She began her career as a senior auditor at Arthur Andersen before moving to Brach’s Confections, where she served as a financial reporting supervisor and budgeting and planning manager. She joined EMJ in 2005, serving in successive positions, including controller, vice president of finance and accounting, senior vice president of finance and accounting, and interim CFO.
In his new role, Brown will continue to build client relationships and pursue new work while providing oversight and strategic vision to the operations team. At EMJ, Brown has been a part of the Montecillo Town Center project in El Paso, TX, which broke ground in the fall, along with two multifamily projects set to break ground this spring in New Mexico and Colorado.
Brown has more than 35 years of construction management experience, including time at Balfour Beatty, CBG Building Co. and BBL Construction as a leader of multifamily and mixed-use markets.
In his new role, Gopffarth will provide leadership, coordination, guidance and technical expertise in all areas of operational execution, including contract compliance, quality, safety, scheduling, warranty and document control.
He provides assistance with preconstruction, development of best practices, assistance with project issues, implementation of construction technology, assistance with claims and dispute resolution, including training and coaching.
Gopffarth has more than 40 years of construction-related experience, 30 with EMJ. Previously, he was project manager, vice president of construction in Dallas, then executive vice president of EMJ’s office in Tulsa, OK. He also ran the wind division at a renewable energy constructor and provided operational oversight for a renewable energy subcontractor.
