United Methodist Communities appoints David Rayha VP of operations

David Rayha headshot
David Rayha

David S. Rayha has been hired as vice president of operations at Neptune, NJ-based United Methodist Communities, effective Nov. 16. He will have strategic oversight and management of UMC’s four full-service communities. 

Rayha brings more than 34 years of experience in management and senior level leadership experience in long-term care to his new role. He joins UMC after eight years as VP of operations/chief operating officer at Brethren Village Retirement Community in Lancaster, PA. He also formerly was an administrator or executive director at Bellingham Retirement Community and Willow Valley Retirement Communities, also in Pennsylvania.

Rayha holds a Master of Public Administration degree with concentration in healthcare management from Pennsylvania State University and two degrees from York College of Pennsylvania: a Bachelor of Science in long-term care administration and a Bachelor of Science in recreation. He also is a licensed nursing home administrator and personal care administrator.

Morning Pointe names new executive vice president, Heather Tussing

Heather Tussing headshot
Heather Tussing

Heather Tussing has been named executive vice president of operations for Morning Pointe Senior Living, Chattanooga, TN. She will be responsible for operations management of all Morning Pointe communities.

Before joining Morning Pointe, Tussing was vice president of assisted living operations for a national senior living company. She began her career in senior living as an executive director and has held senior leadership roles in compliance, quality improvement, healthcare sales and marketing.

Tussing is an assisted living preceptor and holds certifications as an assisted living administrator in multiple states, as well as dementia certifications, including as a dementia practitioner, Alzheimer’s disease and dementia care trainer, and virtual dementia tour facilitator. She earned her undergraduate degree in communications from the University of Kentucky.

Retirement Unlimited announces 2 promotions, new hire

Ray Tate headshot
Ray Tate

Ray Tate has been promoted to Northern Virginia regional vice president, Mandy Brooks has been promoted to executive director for Paul Spring Community, and Christian Randolph has been hired as executive director at Aarondale Community by Roanoke, VA-based Retirement Unlimited Inc.

Mandy Brooks headshot
Mandy Brooks

Before his promotion, Tate was executive director of Paul Spring Community and senior executive director for Ashleigh at Lansdowne and Paul Spring Communities. Brooks formerly was executive director at Aarondale Community.

Christian Randolph headshot
Christian Randolph

Tate has been with RUI since 2018. In his new role, he will expand his oversight and direction to all Northern Virginia communities, including The Wellington at Lake Manassas in Gainesville, Heatherwood in Burke, Aarondale in Springfield, Ashleigh at Lansdowne in Leesburg and Paul Spring in Alexandria. He will assist executive directors and their teams with initiatives and goals while implementing the overall RUI strategic vision.

Brooks has been with RUI since 2018. With her 16 years of experience in the senior living industry, she now will oversee RUI’s second-largest community, which has 145 resident units and 118 staff members.

Randolph, with more than 13 years of experience in senior living leadership, has associate’s and bachelor’s degrees in business administration and a master’s degree in healthcare administration from South University in Savannah, GA.

Capital Senior Living appoints Tiffany Dutton as principal accounting officer

Tiffany L. Dutton has been appointed principal accounting officer at Dallas-based Capital Senior Living. Dutton, a certified public accountant, joined the company as vice president of accounting and financial reporting in January.

Prior to joining Capital Senior Living, she was an accounting consultant primarily focused on assisting healthcare and retail entities with improving financial reporting and accounting structures. Prior to that, Dutton was the director of accounting policy and assistant controller-operations for Adeptus Health, senior manager of financial reporting for RealPage, manager of accounting and reporting and compliance for Pier 1 Imports, and senior manager of accounting policy of Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group.

She began her career as a manager in the assurance and advisory business services practice of Ernst & Young.

Belleview Heights welcomes new executive director, Kimberly Boughton

Kimberly Boughton has been named executive director at Belleview Heights Assisted Living and Memory Care in Aurora, CO. With more than 12 years of experience in the senior living and care industry, Boughton will be responsible for all day-to-day management.

Before starting her career in senior living, Boughton worked as an insurance broker. In 2008, she was a marketing director for a senior home care company, where she was promoted to director of operations. In 2017, she joined another retirement community in Aurora as an executive director.

Belleview Heights is part of Bend, OR-based Sunshine Retirement Living.

Westmont Living announces new hires

Maria Rossi headshot
Maria Rossi

LaJolla, CA-based Westmont Living has announced a new round of hires to address the company’s plans to open four communities in 2021 followed by additional locations in 2022.

Pete Do has been named senior director of culinary services. He previously was the national director of dining services for MBK Senior Living, where he managed 33 communities in six states. Prior to that, he was corporate food and beverage director for Senior Resource Group.

Cherilyn Cordova headshot
Cherilyn Cordova

Maria Rossi has been named regional director of operations. She has more than 15 years of experience as an executive director and national operations specialist for Five Star Senior Living in San Diego and Orange County.

Cherilyn Cordova has been named a sales specialist. She has been part of the healthcare industry for 20 years, including work in senior living, skilled nursing, home health and hospice. For the past four years, she was a sales specialist for Elmcroft by Eclipse Senior Living. She is a graduate of UC Riverside with an undergraduate degree in psychology, and she has an MBA in healthcare administration.

Windsor Heights welcomes new executive director, Brandy Delp

Brandy Delp headshot
Brandy Delp

Brandy Delp is the new executive director at Windsor Heights Assisted Living and Memory Care in Beachwood, OH. She is responsible for all day-to-day management and operations of the community, including financials, marketing, government and community relations. She also will oversee all health and safety programs, including the COVID-19 response.

A licensed practical nurse, Delp also is a certified dementia practitioner and a certified director of assisted living. She is undertaking education to become a registered nurse. She has served older adults for eight years in roles including LPN, administrator of assisted living and executive director.

Windsor Heights is part of the Bend, OR-based Sunshine Retirement Living.

St. Ann’s Community names Cindy Lovetro chief nursing officer 

Cindy Lovetro headshot
Cindy Lovetro

Cindy Lovetro has been named chief nursing officer at St. Ann’s Community, Rochester, NY.

As a member of the leadership team, she will be responsible for overseeing the nursing department’s day-to-day operations. She will be tasked with building and maintaining a high-performing team that seeks to ensure the care delivery model drives exceptional outcomes.

Lovetro is a registered nurse and licensed nursing home administrator. She earned her master’s degree in management and an undergraduate degree in nursing from Nazareth College. She comes to St. Ann’s Community with 39 years of experience in nursing and leadership, including many years of prior experience at several senior living organizations.

Lovetro is on the board of directors of Lifespan and the LeadingAge NY Nursing Facility Cabinet and is a member of several local, state and national nursing associations.

Ohio Living Llanfair rehabilitation services to be led by Linda Kinney

Linda Kinney has been named director of rehabilitation services at Ohio Living Llanfair, a life plan community in Cincinnati.

In her new role, Kinney will oversee Llanfair’s skilled nursing areas. Before joining Ohio Living, she was a charge nurse at Wellsprings Care Center in Cincinnati.

Kinney has an undergraduate degree in nursing sciences and an associate’s degree in surgical technology from the University of Cincinnati.

Sabra announces passing of founding board member Bob Ettl

Sabra Health Care REIT of Irvine, CA, has announced the passing of founding board member Bob Ettle.

Ettl received a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer in 2013, according to Sabra Chairman and CEO Rick Matros.

“Bob was on the Sabra board since inception,” he said. “Ten years ago, we started with one tenant. The success we have had is in no small part due to Bob’s contributions and leadership on the Sabra board. We will miss Bob; his humanity, his brilliance, his unique sense of humor.”

LeadingAge New Jersey & Delaware names Cindy Jacques to board

Cindy Jacques headshot
Cindy Jacques

Cindy Jacques, vice president of housing and community initiatives at Neptune, NJ-based United Methodist Communities, has been named to a three-year term on the board of LeadingAge New Jersey & Delaware. As the board liaison to the association’s Housing Managers Roundtable, Jacques will support its goals of advancing policies, promoting practices and conducting research.

Jacques has been with United Methodist Communities since 2000. She has an undergraduate degree in psychology, a master’s degree in counseling and human services, and specialized training in dementia care, mental health and counseling. She is a certified assisted living administrator and certified social worker with more than 25 years of experience in senior care, housing and social work. 

LeadingAge DC welcomes Ingleside CEO Lynn O’Connor to board of directors

Lynn O’Connor, president and CEO of Washington, DC-based Ingleside, is the new vice chair/secretary on the LeadingAge DC board of directors.

O’Connor joined Ingleside in 2010 and has led aging services organizations since 1980. She formerly was president and CEO for Frasier and The Washington Home & Community Hospices, executive director for Asbury Methodist Village, superintendent for Buttonwood, administrator for Rittenhouse Care Center, and administrator in training for Key Circle Hospice.

O’Connor serves on the Presbyterian Association of Homes and Services for the Aging board of directors and chaired the Maryland Assisted Living Task Force, which created Maryland assisted living regulations. 

A graduate of St. Joseph’s University, she has a master’s degree in healthcare administration from Central Michigan University and certification in long-term care administration from the University of Maryland. She is a licensed nursing home administrator in Maryland and is a certified aging services professional.

SAGE welcomes new leadership to board of directors

Ian Lee Brown, vice president of organizational development at Erickson Living, has been named to LGBT elder advocacy organization SAGE’s national board of directors. In celebration of Brown’s new role, Erickson Living and National Senior Campuses will each donate $10,000 to SAGE.

In his senior leadership role with Erickson Living, Brown focuses on culture, employee retention, career growth programs, developing pipelines of talent internally and externally, and diversity, inclusion and belonging.

“As we engage SAGECare in our effort toward company-wide bronze-level certification in 2021, we stand behind the great work that SAGE is doing on behalf of the LGBT community,” Erickson Living CEO Alan Butler said. “Ian has made important contributions within our organization, and we are confident that he will continue to have a positive impact in his new role with SAGE.”

Healthcare Management Partners’ Don Bivacca appointed to Tennessee Council on Aging and Disability, AARP

Don Bivacca headshot
Don Bivacca

Don Bivacca, managing director at Nashville-based turnaround management and financial advisory firm Healthcare Management Partners, has been appointed to the board of the Tennessee Commission on Aging and Disability by Gov. Bill Lee. He also has been named Tennessee state president of the AARP.

Bivacca will join the TCAD board in coordinating and leveraging resources, developing programs that support comprehensive and coordinated community-based systems and projects, and ensuring the quality of life and independence of older Tennesseans and adults with disabilities.

As state president of Tennessee AARP, he will lead the group’s executive council and oversee its work with the national AARP staff to determine priorities and develop programs that affect older adults in Tennessee.

Bivacca leads HMP’s Senior Solutions division, which manages senior living and care facilities with a focus on senior housing, including assisted living and skilled nursing facilities. In partnerships with Pathway Health, HMP Senior Solutions supports operators with financial reporting and auditing management, asset management and implementation of processes designed to help ensure regulatory compliance.

Walker & Dunlop establishes presence in Utah with hiring of Colton Smith

Colton Smith has joined Bethesda, MD-based  commercial real estate finance company Walker & Dunlop as senior director as the firm expands its geographic footprint in the western United States.

Based in Salt Lake City, Smith will focus on sourcing debt financing for all commercial real estate asset classes nationally as well as expanding the firm’s reach and capabilities within Salt Lake City and the greater Utah region. He brings more than 10 years of commercial real estate experience to the firm.

Before joining Walker & Dunlop, Smith was a first vice president with Marcus & Millichap, where he secured financing for senior housing, multifamily, office, industrial, retail and hospitality properties. Prior to Marcus & Millichap, Smith founded the commercial lending division for a Salt Lake City real estate conglomerate. Throughout his career, he has completed more than $1 billion in debt originations.