Her Story
About Tonya
I've been working with seniors since 1988, starting as a caregiver while still in high school. After earning my LPN degree in 1995, I entered the senior living field professionally in 1999 and have been serving in my current role as Executive Director for 12 years. My specialty is going into communities that need help, whether they're struggling with staffing, census, or business operations, and turning them around. I focus on building great teams, either by hiring new staff or helping existing teams work together more effectively using the tools they have. I handle leadership, hiring, training, census growth, and business operations. My most notable achievement has been growing great teams and helping communities fix their financial challenges while ensuring we're not overspending. What I love most is working with both my team and the residents, helping solve problems and taking stress off the shoulders of adult children during crisis situations.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Tonya
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to my love for my residents and helping solve problems for them and my staff. The residents come first, but the staff have to be there too - it's kind of like the chicken or the egg, they're both equally important. What really drives me is just helping people. I love taking the stress off of the adult children's shoulders, especially when they're in a crisis and they know they can find someone they can trust. That's just such a rewarding feeling for me.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
Trust your gut.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Do the right thing the first time. Get into this field because it feels great to help others, and seniors deserve that. You've got to have the passion - if you don't have the passion, then you're in the wrong place. This isn't always a loveless type of job. Sometimes you have to give people information they don't want to hear and really get people mad at you sometimes, even though you're doing things the right way. But if you have that passion to help others, it's worth it.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
Some of the biggest challenges would be staffing and working with a lot of different people that bring their own personal challenges that you have to help work through. We've had to adapt from what we used to do in HR or staffing. Now we kind of have to adapt and change a little bit, because staff are having more times that they need off, or they can't always follow the policy. So being able to adapt to meet their needs is a challenge.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Honesty, communication, empathy, respect, love, and showing love.
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