THE INSPIRATION COMPILATION IT'S THE CLIMB


Stories of senior living professionals who worked their way up the career path: What keeps them going? What and who inspired them on the way, and every day?


BY KENYA MCCULLUM


Matt Theodore, Director of Environmental Services, Radiant Senior Living  His senior living entry job was as a part-time landscaper at Farmington Square community in Beaverton, Ore., in 2004.


 He earned an associate degree in facilities management while working.


I go back to that basic question that I’ve asked myself continuously throughout my career, “Why do you do what you do?” The answer to me has always been


simple: for the residents. To see that light in their eyes brighten up when you come into their rooms to do that repair—there’s just nothing like it. That’s what really keeps me in the industry, knowing that I make a difference on a larger scale. The great thing about my current position is that I can visit a lot of the communities we have and get that contact with the residents and the staffs and build those relationships. A lot of things have sparked my growth,


and I want to keep growing within the com- pany. I remember a distinct instance: I was in the courtyard pruning, and people from the investment company came by with the ownership, and they’re in their nice suits, walking around, looking at the plan and all the environmental details, and they asked me some questions. I just remember feeling: Someday, I want to do that. I want to work with them. That’s where I want to make the difference. It hit me about three years ago, when I


had a meeting at that location. We were walking around the building and the court- yard, and it just hit me—because I had


forgotten about that. So here I am walking the investment company around, pointing things out, and I thought: I did it, I did it! It was nice, it was awesome. I had a fantastic mentor—and that made


all the difference. He was a “good old boy”; he was pretty rough on me, but in a good way. He was the type of person that would tell me, “Don’t tell a resident that you’re going to change a light bulb and then not come back, because that light bulb is going


to make all the difference in their world.” We have so many years of experience


in the maintenance industry within our company. I tell people I manage, “Use your talent, share your skills with everybody else.” And I ask them, “What can I do for you to make your job easier or more effective for our residents?” I think that helps inspire them because it gives them that feel good feeling of making a difference—it was their idea, and everyone is using it now. And I appreciate them—all of the


TIP: Envision the future you want, and then determine the steps needed to get to it.


16 SENIOR LIVING EXECUTIVE NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2021


maintenance directors, maintenance staff, housekeeping. Every department we have is crucial, and we try to push that as a company—that we appreciate what they do, and I sincerely do.


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