nursing homes

The national home care company recognizes Cathy Cahill for her selflessness in caring for clients during the COVID-19 pandemic.

MCHENRY, Ill. — FirstLight Home Care, an award-winning provider of non-medical home care, has named Cathy Cahill of McHenry, Ill. as its National Caregiver of the Year.

Cahill was recognized during a ceremony at FirstLight’s national conference in Salt Lake City, Utah last month. She was nominated for the award by Sande Sherman, the owner of FirstLight Home Care of McHenry County.

“Cathy is the embodiment of what people look for when they want to hire a caregiver,” Sherman said. “She is selfless, flexible and invested. When the husband of one of our clients was hospitalized due to COVID-19 complications, Cathy put her life on hold to stay with his wife, who has dementia and was also COVID positive. Cathy even slept in the same room with the wife to ensure her safety and comfort.”

“Cathy is also our go-to when we need someone to fill in. She really gets to know her clients’ special preferences and brings them their favorite ice cream, soup or candy bar,” Sherman said. “She is a treasured member of our FirstLight family and absolutely deserves this recognition because she is living our culture every day.”

Nominations for the award were received from FirstLight offices across the United States. Caregiver of the Year nominees were evaluated based on dependability, advocacy, empathy, quality of service and compassion toward clients.

FirstLight caregivers help seniors and other adults in need of assistance with personal care and household duties such as cooking, cleaning and running errands. The FirstLight franchise network includes nearly 200 independently owned and operated home care locations across the U.S. and Canada.

For more information on the McHenry County location, visit McHenry.FirstLightHomeCare.com.

National home care provider announces new President and team members in Field Support, Operations, Healthcare Strategy.

CINCINNATI — FirstLight Home Care, a leading provider of home care services, has named a new president and announced strategic personnel additions to its leadership team that will help drive the company’s continued long-term growth.

Bernard Markey, Managing Partner Board of Directors for FirstLight Home Care, said, “Acquiring the right talent is one of the most important contributors to growth. These leaders possess the qualifications, expertise and determination to help propel FirstLight into even more success as an organization.”

Glee McAnanly was recently appointed President. She has been leading the company to help drive sustainable growth and further FirstLight’s long-term vision and Culture of Care. Glee brings a wealth of experience, including more than 30 years in franchise leadership and vast expertise in owner operations. Previously Glee was Chief Development Officer and Chief Franchisee Relations Officer for ServiceMaster’s five franchise brands.

FirstLight Home Care’s Business Development Team has expanded significantly to provide consistent operational support to franchisees across all regions.

Mark Vanase was hired as Executive Vice President of Business Development and Franchise Services. He supports the business development team to facilitate franchisee growth, while also ensuring a commitment to policies, processes and leading practices. Vanase worked with the ServiceMaster family of brands for 25 years and has extensive experience managing large field operations teams.

Kevin Samov joined FirstLight as Business Development Director for the Central Region. He is responsible for helping franchisees maintain thriving home care businesses through strong operational practices. Previously, Samov was Senior Manager of Franchisee Training for all ServiceMaster brands, where he focused on new owner development and on creating sales processes and strategies for ServiceMaster Restore.

Joni Hemmis was hired as Business Development Director for the East Region. Hemmis leads field support efforts to maximize the success of franchise territories, from driving business growth to helping franchisees achieve operational excellence. She has 20 years of experience working in the home health care field, having owned an independent full-service home health care company for 14 years.

FirstLight also added to its Healthcare Strategy Team, hiring Kelley Hill, MSN, RN as Executive Director of Compliance and Clinical Services. She serves as a clinical resource, guiding franchisees through the licensing acquisition and accreditation process and collaborating with the FirstLight leadership team to integrate holistic compliance initiatives. Hill has been a Director of Nursing and she held managerial positions in Emergency Services with several hospital systems.  Most recently, she was National Director, Clinical Innovations & Design for a leading in-home healthcare, hospice and home care company.

“This team is already demonstrating a strong commitment to our core values. There is no doubt their proven success of growing businesses from the operations side of both the franchisor and franchisee will continue to help take this company into the future,” Markey said.

FirstLight Home Care CEO drives nearly 1,500 miles to recognize Stephanie King for outstanding dedication, service and integrity.

OMAHA, Neb. — FirstLight Home Care, an award-winning provider of non-medical home care, named Omaha resident Stephanie King its 2020 National Caregiver of the Year. Stephanie, with FirstLight Home Care of Omaha, was presented the accolade this week during a personal visit from the company’s CEO and co-founder Jeff Bevis, along with his wife, Maribeth.

The Caregiver of the Year award is usually presented at an annual gala during FirstLight Home Care’s national conference. However, due to COVID-19, the conference was postponed. Jeff and Maribeth wanted to give Stephanie the recognition she deserved in person, so they hit the road and made a special trip, driving nearly 1,500 miles to honor this special caregiver.

FirstLight has more than 5,000 caregivers nationwide, with nominations for the award coming in from all over the country. Caregiver of the Year nominees were evaluated based on dependability, advocacy, empathy, quality of service and compassion toward clients. Stephanie was nominated by FirstLight Home Care of Omaha owner Jaye Firmature McCoy.

“Stephanie has been making a difference in people’s lives for a long time, and she absolutely deserves this honor,” said Jaye. “She came to FirstLight nearly three years ago with 15 years of in-home care experience. Back then, we had no idea the impact she would have on our clients, our office staff and our business.”

Jaye goes on to say that Stephanie has excellent personal and companion caregiving skills. She embraces every client as if they were her own family, and she connects with them on a personal level. She not only cares for her clients, but she also provides warmth, understanding and support to the family caregivers she works with every day.

“Stephanie is intelligent, intuitive, kind, compassionate, hardworking, reliable, cheerful, and physically and emotionally strong. And she handles every situation with impeccable grace and patience.”

Jaye added, “We are so grateful that the CEO of our franchise organization drove such a long way to personally present this award to our Caregiver of the Year. It really validates how much we truly do believe, from the top down, in our Culture of Care.”

FirstLight caregivers like Stephanie help seniors and other adults with many needs – from personal hygiene and household duties such as cooking, light housekeeping and running errands, to respite and dementia care. For more information, visit Omaha.FirstLightHomeCare.com.

Leading non-medical home care company expands across North America to deliver quality personal and companion care services.

CINCINNATI — FirstLight® Home Care, an award-winning provider of non-medical home care, is pleased to announce it is expanding its caregiving services to Canada. Sam Riad, CEO of Comfort of Senior Living, has signed on as a master franchise and will operate as FirstLight Home Care of Canada.

Riad currently operates 10 Comfort of Senior Living retirement communities across the Province of Ontario. The master franchise agreement will allow Riad to introduce the FirstLight Home Care brand and deliver the company’s non-medical home care services to a brand-new market.

“We are thrilled to bring our FirstLight brand to Canada,” said Jeff Bevis, CEO and Co-Founder of FirstLight Home Care. “International expansion has always been part of our strategy, and we believe we have found a solid master franchise partner in Sam Riad. He has extensive experience and a deep understanding of the industry, established relationships in the market and the infrastructure for rapid growth. And we share a similar mission, culture and calling to care for aging seniors and other adults in need of extra support.”

As a notable and award-winning home care company, FirstLight provides exceptional care for seniors, veterans, people with disabilities and individuals who are recuperating. FirstLight’s national network of franchises is dedicated to the health and well-being of others by delivering compassionate and quality services to individuals in the place they call home.

Riad and his team will bring the same culture of care and commitment to quality service to residents in Canada by offering FirstLight’s companion and personal caregiving services to adults who need assistance. The partnership is a natural complement to existing demand and future growth in Canada.

“We recognized the tremendous success of FirstLight in the U.S and realized how beneficial this model would be to the Canadian market, especially with the recent increasing trend of older adults wishing to stay at home longer,” said Riad. “We are passionate about helping individuals in our communities, and FirstLight sets the pace by offering innovative home care services that ensure people in need receive premium care.”

Canadian CEO Brad Rye will lead the implementation of FirstLight Home Care into Canada. Rye has owned and operated various Homes for Special Care for the past 30 years. He is co-founder and former president of the Ontario Homes for Special Needs Association (OHSNA), representing 500 homes and 5,000 residents across Ontario. Recently working with the Ontario government, Rye assisted in the development and implementation of a resident-focused model of housing and services.

FirstLight Home Care of Canada has plans to open six locations immediately across Ontario, with an aggressive vision to establish 150 more locations through expansion and franchise opportunities across Canada.

Since opening its first franchise location in 2010, FirstLight Home Care has experienced steady growth and is now serving clients in 220+ locations in more than 30 states throughout the U.S. This is the company’s first international expansion to Canada.

For more information, call (855) 420-6900 or visit FirstLightHomeCare.com/Canada

June 21st: The day with the most light is the day we fight

CINCINNATI — On June 21, FirstLight® Home Care will raise funds and awareness to advance the Alzheimer’s Association’s care, support and research programs for The Longest Day®. The home care company has created a Global Team and invited its franchise locations across the country to join in the fight to end Alzheimer’s.

“FirstLight Home Care is honored to support the Alzheimer’s Association’s efforts to raise awareness and funds in the fight against Alzheimer’s disease,” said Rebecca Rushing BSN, RN, Director of Client Care Services for FirstLight. “Several of our employees have been affected by this devastating disease. We also take care of many clients and families who are living with Alzheimer’s. We recognize the importance of participating in activities such as The Longest Day that help bring the disease out of the shadows.”

The Longest Day is held on June 21 – the summer solstice and the day with the most light. Thousands of participants across the world will come together to fight the darkness of Alzheimer’s through an activity of their choice. FirstLight Home Care offices in the company’s more than 175 markets across the U.S. will participate in a variety of activities and events to shine a light on the 5.7 million Americans living with Alzheimer’s disease and the more than 16 million family members and friends providing care and support.

FirstLight teams will raise funds through events and activities in their local markets, such as bake sales, chili cook-offs, health fairs and more. Some will also hold Ageless Grace fitness classes that are open to the public. Ageless Grace is a fitness and wellness program that seeks to improve health and well-being, reduce stress, keep the brain agile and keep the body responsive. The nominal class registration fee from each event will be donated to The Longest Day.

“We are thrilled to partner with Ageless Grace on The Longest Day,” added Rushing. “Last year, we began offering Ageless Grace training to our franchise owners and managers who, in turn, have trained their caregivers. The customized curriculum was developed by Denise Medved, founder and creator of Ageless Grace, specifically for FirstLight Home Care. The program has been wonderful for our clients who are experiencing cognitive decline.”

Key facts about Alzheimer’s include:

• Alzheimer’s disease is the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States.
• More than 5 million Americans are living with the disease.
• 16 million family and friends provide unpaid care to people with Alzheimer’s or other dementias in the United States.
• Every 65 seconds, someone in the United States develops Alzheimer’s.
• In 2018, more than 16 million caregivers of people living with Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias provided an estimated 18.5 billion hours of unpaid care, a contribution to the nation valued at nearly $234 billion.
• In 2019, Alzheimer’s disease will cost the United States $290 billion. This number is projected to rise to more than $1.1 trillion in 2050.

The FirstLight Home Office Headquarters in Cincinnati will be holding several fundraising events as well from June 21 through August all in support of The Longest Day. For more information about Alzheimer’s disease, visit the Alzheimer’s Association at alz.org.

Leading non-medical home care provider offers training, seminars and awards during three-day event

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — FirstLight Home Care, an award-winning provider of non-medical home care, hosted franchise owners and caregivers from across the country at its annual national conference this past weekend.

The conference, held at the InterContinental Kansas City at the Plaza, included educational seminars and workshops, specialized training and networking, and was capped off by an awards dinner honoring multiple franchisees at the historic Midland Theatre.

“We began FirstLight Home Care nearly a decade ago, and it’s been a wonderful journey,” said Jeff Bevis, co-founder and CEO of FirstLight Home Care. “Each year, the annual conference gives the FirstLight family an opportunity to come together as we celebrate the previous year’s accomplishments, continued growth and innovation. FirstLight is constantly finding new ways to better serve our clients and caregivers, and I look forward to seeing what the future holds.”

The 2019 conference theme was “Fundamentals and All That Jazz,” which focused on getting back to the basics, including the fundamentals of business and the Culture of Care that is the foundation of FirstLight’s service to others.

Franchise owners also had the opportunity to participate in a two-day Ageless Grace training session. Ageless Grace is an innovative fitness program that offers exercise for the body while stimulating the mind. The class taught attendees the 21 tools for brain health and why they are so effective as well as prepared them to take Ageless Grace back to their own communities.

Keynote speakers included Teepa Snow, a world-renowned advocate and educator for those living dementia, and Greg Hawks, a corporate culture specialist whose focuses include ownership, leadership, accountability, trust and culture.

FirstLight Home Care recognized its top-performing franchise owners for growth, improvement and overall performance at the April 27 award dinner, including:

• Caregiver of the Year: Cynthia English, Woodbridge, Virginia
• Franchisee of the Year: Jeremy Fellows, Don Fellows and Jeff Lamborne, Grand Rapids, Michigan
• Rookie of the Year: Paul Terpeluk, South Placer County, California
• Top Single Office Leader: Perry Ciambella, East Buffalo, New York
• Top Multi-Office Leader: Judy DeVincentis, Grand Junction, Colo., and Pueblo, Colorado
• Client Satisfaction/Quality Assurance:
  • Don and Craig Randall, Charleston, South Carolina
  • Vincent McMahon, Westchester County, New York
  • Annette and Phil Smith, Chardon, Ohio

“This event is all about our franchise owners, and it has three main components,” Bevis said. “It’s about showing appreciation for our franchise owners, honoring our top performers and providing continuing education for everyone. It’s a three-day period that offers a wealth of knowledge from training, brainstorming, discussions and simple camaraderie.”

Since opening its first franchise location in 2010, FirstLight Home Care has experienced steady growth and is now serving more than 5,000 clients in 173 markets throughout the U.S.

For more information on FirstLight Home Care and franchise ownership opportunities, visit www.firstlightfranchise.com.

National non-medical home care provider to open first Idaho location

COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho — FirstLight Home Care, an award-winning provider of non-medical home care, announced today it will open a new location in the Coeur d’Alene area in 2019. The office will be owned and operated by local entrepreneurs Matt Zastrow and Brad Leggat and will be the first in the state.

“Matt and Brad are experienced business owners who will represent FirstLight excellently in this new territory,” said Jeff Bevis, FirstLight Home Care co-founder and CEO. “Idaho has seen a growing population of retirees over the last decade, and we are eager for this expansion to extend FirstLight’s culture of care to meet the growing need for home care services in the area.”

The new FirstLight Home Care will serve the greater Coeur d’Alene area, including Spokane Valley, Hayden, Rathdrum, and Post Falls. Qualified caregivers — home health aides and CNAs — interested in FirstLight career opportunities are encouraged to email mzastrow@firstlighthomecare.com.

FirstLight serves seniors, adults with disabilities, new mothers, veterans, those recovering from surgery and other adults in need of assistance. Their caregivers help with many needs – from personal hygiene and household duties, such as cooking, cleaning and running errands, to mobility assistance and dementia care.

Since opening its first franchise location in 2010, FirstLight Home Care has experienced steady growth and is now operating more than 250 locations in 34 states throughout the U.S.