Archive | December, 2013

Emily Edwards was hired as Service Coordinator at Bethany Manor in June of 2013.  She was born in Nashville Tennessee and was partially raised by her grandmother until she passed away when Emily was a small child. From an early age, Emily thought of her grandmother as a role model. While working a maid, her grandmother would often bring Emily to events she worked at, and would say she felt she was the best maid in Nashville. There was great pride in completing a hard day’s work. Emily’s grandmother was one of the first African Americans in Nashville to have electricity in her house, and loved to organize trips for her and her friends.

When her grandmother passed away, Emily came to Detroit. Her parents eventually bought a house in Rosedale Park, where she, her two sisters and brother lived.

Her father found a job at the Chrysler Corporation when he was 17, and ended up working there for over 30 years. Starting out as a janitor, he worked his way up to Stock Chaser Supervisor by the time he retired. Emily’s mother was minister and a hairdresser.

Emily graduated from Cooley High School and got married when she was 18. Her husband was a marine and with him she had two children. She wanted to travel before having kids, and got to do as much “as much as the government would let me” as she went with her husband to several different bases. After 17 years of marriage, her husband, who had been diagnosed with cancer, passed away.

After attaining an associate’s degree later in life from Wayne Community College (WCC), Emily went to Marygrove College and received her Bachelors of Arts (BA). She also began working on becoming a minister as well. Later, Emily enrolled at Wayne State University and received her Masters of Social Work (MSW) and is now back at school going for a PhD in Education and Organizational Leadership online through Grand Canyon University.

Emily worked for over 15 years at McDonalds, starting in as a restaurant manager, and receiving manager of the year twice. The company saw potential in her and promoted her first as a troubleshooter, going from restaurant to restaurant and eventually to the corporate office as a trainer. During this period, she was told she had cancer, but was able to heal with radiation and no chemotherapy.

When she was in the hospital, Emily met a social worker who dealt with the elderly. This individual inspired her, along with her daughter who encouraged her to go back to school. She wanted to go for her PhD and saw the Service Coordinator position on Wayne State’s job site. Since taking the job, the best part is building relationships with residents and promoting an open door policy that maintains transparency and trust.

Emily’s 6 grandchildren,  5 boys and 1 girl, the oldest being 16 and the youngest being just 14 months, have been hobby enough for Emily, along with pursuing graduate education. Also, Emily is a newlywed, recently marrying a nice man she met at church. She was the church announcer and he a deacon. Being newly married at this time in her life feels refreshing and renews her faith in the future.

Janice McPhail was hired as Service Coordinator at the Village of Mill Creek in Battle Creek Michigan this past August. She has lived a life devoted to service and is a shining example of what makes service coordinators such valuable assets in PVM facilities. Her passion for supporting aging individuals has been evident for quite some time.

Family is very important to Janice. Her parents, Myron and Edith Zongker have passed away but played a major role in her life, along with her older sister Karen. Myron was a truck driver turned boxer who ended his career working for the Clark Equipment Company. Edith also worked at Clark Equipment Company and then stayed home to help raise their children. The family lived on a small farm and had their own calves and horses along with their dog Puggie, a brindle boxer.

Janice attended Athens High School in Athens Michigan, growing up on a farm and experiencing the joys of small town living. Her first stop after graduating was Kellogg Community College in Battle Creek Michigan, where she initially wanted to be a nurse but changed her mind after witnessing barrels of dead cats in one of her classes. She then went on to Argubright Business College in Battle Creek, what is now known as Davenport University, where she received an Associates Degree in Business. Then, she eventually enrolled in Everest University where she received her Bachelors of Arts in Medical Assisting.

All through school and after receiving her Bachelors degree, Janice worked at jobs where she took care of elderly individuals. For 10 years, she cared for her parents, Myron and Edith, taking them to doctors appointments and addressing various afflictions like diabetes. Her personal work blended with her professional pursuits, as she began working at the Burnham Brook Center for Senior Citizens, helping clients to exercise and take care of themselves. After many trips to the doctors office with those she cared for, Doctors kept wanting to tell Janice how wait times for their patients seemed to go by much faster because she was there, because she made them laugh and feel safe enough to interact with each other. When she heard about the opportunity to work at Mill Creek as a Service Coordinator, these previous experiences and votes of confidence from co-workers and doctors inspired her to go for it and apply.

When asked, Janice said Mill Creek is a family. Even before being hired, she was talking to residents before her interview in the lobby, engaging in enough conversation that her interviewer had to give her a few minutes to wrap up with them before starting their own discussion. She says it has been a blessing to work in Battle Creek, where she has a network of businesses and individuals who she can call upon to speak at the Village, from Chiropractors to experts on Obamacare.

Traveling and working on arts and crafts projects are fun pastimes. Her favorite places to go are Italy and Hawaii. She loves big Italian meals where people sit together at long tables and converse. When home, she paints rocks, makes earrings and crochets among other things.

Janice loves books, citing the bible as the most important in her life. She generally enjoys books on spirituality as well. When relaxing, she says romance movies are her favorite, specifically the movie “Somewhere in Time” that took place on Mackinaw Island.

In the future, Janice hopes to transition more into management roles where she can make sure things are done correctly in line with the Hannan Foundation. She enjoys structure and a positive working environment and wants to create opportunities for her programs to reflect that as well.