Graceworks hires new VP of human resources and success coach

Dawn Barhorst

Dawn Barhorst has been hired by Graceworks Lutheran Services to be the vice president of human resources, and Kathleen Rome is the new success coach there. 

Kathleen Rome

Barhorst comes to Graceworks after working in human resources at NCR and then ITW. In her new role, she will help attract, retain and celebrate employees. She received both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Wright State University, Dayton, OH.

Rome, as success coach for Graceworks’ new Employee Resource Network called “Soaring to Success,” will work to increase the professional / personal life balance of employees. Rome already has assisted several Graceworks employees who were severely affected by recent Dayton, OH-area tornadoes to find new homes, resources for property cleanup and food donation sites. She will continue to help employees during times of crisis or transition, and all her work will be confidential.

Guest Services Senior Living welcomes new VP of operations

Shawn Rose

Shawn Rose joins Guest Services Senior Living as the new vice president of operations with 20 years of experience in the senior living and care industry.

Prior to joining Guest Services, Rose was the regional director of operations for Senior Lifestyle Corp. and senior vice president of sales and marketing for Raydian Properties. In those positions, he helped promote revenue growth of multiple properties across several states. 

Rose holds a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration degree from the University of Arizona. He is a licensed and New Jersey-certified assisted living administrator and a certified dementia practitioner.

Franciscan Care Services CEO resigns

Jerry Wordekemper

Jerry Wordekemper will resign as CEO of West Point, NE-based Franciscan Care Services, effective July 26. 

Wordekemper has worked there for 11 years and joined FCS as the administrator of St. Joseph’s Retirement Community. During his tenure, the hospital added a new patient tower and built St. Joseph’s Hillside Villa retirement community.

FCS is conducting a search for an interim CEO. Once one is in place, the process for finding a permanent CEO will begin and will involve Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity Sponsored Ministries, the leadership of FCS and the FCS Board.

Ventana by Buckner hires executive director

Charles “Chuck” Childress

Charles “Chuck” Childress was named executive director of Ventana by Buckner, effective July 15.

Childress began his career at Buckner Parkway Place in Houston, where he was the executive director. Following that, he spent nine years with Methodist Retirement Communities as executive director and, more recently, as the chief operating officer for the organization.

Childress has an undergraduate degree in social work from Stephen F. Austin State University, a master’s degree in social work from the University of Houston and a long-term care administration post-master’s degree certificate from the University of Texas Health Science Center. He is also a licensed nursing facility administrator.

Watercrest Senior Living Group announces executive director of new community

Dawn Osterweil

Dawn Osterweil has been named the executive director of Watercrest Naples Assisted Living and Memory Care, which is set to open this fall.

The new community from Watercrest Senior Living Group is located in Naples, FL, and offers 128 units for residents. 

Osterweil brings more than 20 years of senior living care experience to the position. She has served as an executive director, senior executive director, nursing home administrator, mentor and training specialist and operations manager throughout her career.

Brookdale board member decides against re-election

James Seward

James Seward announced that he will not be standing for re-election to Brookdale Senior Living’s Board of Directors.

Seward has served on the board since 2008. Most recently, he was chair of the Investment Committee and was a member of the Audit Committee.

SCAN Health Plan adds two board members

Celeste Ortiz

Celeste Ortiz and Brandon Jones have been joined the board of directors for SCAN Health Plan, a not-for-profit Medicare Advantage plan. 

Brandon Jones

Ortiz is the chief people officer of Crossover Health. She has more than 20 years of human resources experience and specializes in organizational development, acquisition integration, talent management, diversity and inclusion and change acceleration. Her prior roles include positions at Medtronic, Johnson & Johnson and Pfizer Pharmaceuticals.

Jones is the head of Americas Sales Development at Google Cloud, where he leads more than 250 people across the United States, Canada and Latin America. Previously, he led the U.S. product operations team for seven of Google’s technology products, overseeing technology engineers and operators scaling products from pre-launch to maturity, and serving hundreds of millions of users each day. Earlier in his career, Jones spent nearly 10 years in finance, strategy, technology and operational roles at companies including Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, Johnson & Johnson and the Marsh & McLennan Companies.

Jones Lang LaSalle announces two new board members

Deborah McAneny and Siddharth N. Mehta have been named independent, non-executive members of Jones Lang LaSalle’s board of directors. The two officially joined the board July 2.

McAneny served on the board of leading capital markets intermediary HFF until its recent acquisition by JLL. She currently is a board member at KKR Real Estate Finance Trust, THL Credit Advisors, RREEF Property Trust and RREEFF America REIT II. She also serves as a principal of Equinox Advisors. Her previous jobs include chief operating officer at Benchmark and executive vice president, structured and alternative investments, at John Hancock Financial Services.

Mehta currently serves on the boards of the Allstate Corp., Northern Trust, TransUnion, Entrust Datacard Corp., Piramal Enterprises and Avant. He also is a member of the nonprofit boards of the Field Museum and the Chicago Public Education Fund. He was the president and CEO of TransUnion and prior to that he held various roles at HSBC. 

WesleyLife CEO receives WELLCOM award

Rob Kretzinger

Rob Kretzinger, the CEO of WesleyLife, was recently awarded the Light of Wellness Leadership Award. 

This award is the highest honor from WELLCOM, an organization that provides members resources to promote workplace wellness programs. The award is given annually to a senior-level executive who provides encouragement, time and resources to create an improved workplace for his or her team members across multiple dimensions of well-being. 

Kretzinger was selected for implementing physical exercise, mindfulness and healthful nutrition choices at WesleyLife’s eight Communities for Healthy Living, its home office and its other campus locations throughout Iowa. He will accept his award during an Oct. 8 ceremony in Omaha. 

Send personnel news to Senior Editor Lois A. Bowers. Please include a high-quality color photo.