Question & Answer

What made you decide on a career in the health

My rst job in ong Term Care ( TC), was as a social worker in a nursing home, in Rogers. I accepted the position, somewhat reluctantly, because I was pregnant with my rst son, Will, and desperately needed health insurance. My husband, Ryan, (I call him Iggy), was still in law school, so I was the sole provider for our family and we needed that stability. I quickly learned that nursing homes weren’t the depressing places I’d once thought, and that I absolutely love working with the elderly. I have worked in TC ever since and can’t imagine a career for me without the elderly involved in some way.

I majored in Psychology in college (University of Central Arkansas, Conway), and had intentions of becoming a child psychologist. I decided not to pursue a career working with children who come from tragedy and unfortunate circumstances. That was just too emotionally taxing for me to deal with day-in and day-out. After a few years of working as the social worker in nursing homes, I obtained my Administrator’s icense and worked as a nursing home administrator since 2011.

What is your favorite part of the job?

My satisfaction comes from being able to help our clients and their loved ones make the most out of the time they have left. Knowing that my role has the potential to optimize the overall service delivered to our clients is motivating and keeps me from losing sight of why I do what I do. I love interacting with the clients and seeing how their faces light up when they walk in the room and are greeted by our staff. It’s so rewarding to hear from client caregivers how our services have allowed them an opportunity to carry on with their lives too.

Village House has allowed me to get to know the clients and caregivers more so than as a nursing home administrator, and I’m also enjoying meeting all the wonderful people involved in the Bella Vista churches and other organizations; the support this community shows Village House has truly blown me away! And our volunteers are certainly like gold to us. There’s no way Village House could offer such affordable services at such high quality without everyone’s support.

What are some of the goals you have in your position as Director of Village House?

My rst goal is to increase the public’s awareness about Village House. I am very surprised at how many people don’t know what Village House is. Village House has served this community for almost 30 years, starting in 1988, and it is very common — even still — for people to ask me, “What is Village House ”

Secondly, I would like to serve more clients. We are currently licensed to serve up to 30 clients per day. We have several vacancies and I am certain there is a greater need for our services than what our numbers indicate. We are raising money right now to pay for a remodel of our facility, so we can serve up to 50 clients per day. That’s another goal — raise money so we can grow! We have applied for several grants and are looking for any business or organization to partner with and help fund this project. I would like to expand Village House into Washington County, and I’m working with Mt. Sequoyah in Fayetteville on. Hopefully to begin construction next year.

I’d say, in general, making Village House the premier provider of Adult Programs in Arkansas is the overall goal. I want people to know that when they hear “Village House,” they know what we are and that we set the bar for all other programs similar to ours.

What do you like to do in your free time?

I have three sons, Will (9), Jack (4), and James (13 months), and I’m married to Ryan (Iggy), so there is not a whole lot of free time. However, if I have a few hours to kill, I can likely be found either at a park with my boys, working out at the gym, or grilling out with our family — we love food. My husband really enjoys grilling and we all love eating, so it goes hand-in-hand.

Iggy is an attorney at Bailey and Oliver aw Firm in Rogers. He is on the Bailey and Oliver ive Auction Team; they go to local charity fundraisers and conduct live auctions. We enjoy attending these events and if we aren’t at the ball park or at home, we can usually be found helping raise money for local charities.