Meet Scott
Executive Director
The executive director, along with our friendly and professional staff, strives to create positive, stimulating ways for residents to continue living life with meaning and purpose. We are friendly family where we treat residents like real people with real life stories.
Our community is a great story that includes heartwarming chapters and incredibly unique characters all in a wonderful setting. Here is the executive director’s story:
What do you like best about your job?
Making the residents laugh and having them try new things they thought they could never do. For example: bowling with the Wii game.
In what ways do your residents inspire you?
They challenge me to be more creative. I didn't realize I could come up with new and innovative activities until I started working at my first community. They inspire me to come up with something new everyday, even if it's just making someone laugh.
Do you have any memorable experiences with a particular resident you would like to share?
We held an Academy Awards night and we gave away awards to the residents. Well, Jack D. won an award for the most cordial resident in the community. He was so proud of that award, that he kept it right on his china shelf, so everyone could see. Every time someone came to visit him, he would proudly show it off.
How do you honor your residents at your community?
Every month I buy six roses and I go around and place one on the door handle of six different apartments with a note that says "from a friend." To this day, none of the residents, male or female know where the roses are from!
Tell us about a resident with a remarkable life story?
This answer is really about two residents, Herb and Bill. They were sitting at lunch and talking about World War II and swapping stories when they realized they were both in the same battle and in the same city. The remarkable part of this story was Bill was fighting for the Germans and Herb was fighting for the English. Bill remembers the plane Herb was flying because it bombed Bill's foxhole three times and he survived. They were able to sit there and laugh about it in the same room 65 years later.
How long have you worked in the retirement industry?
7 years
What do you like to do in your free time and why?
I like to fly remote control airplanes, sky dive and watch NASCAR racing.
If you could meet one person, past or present, who would it be and why?
I would like to meet George Washington. I would want to talk to him about what it felt like running a new country after separating from the British and the challenges he had taken on.
What’s your favorite movie and why?
My favorite movie is "Tootsie" with Dustin Hoffman because as an actor, it is the greatest accomplishment to act as the opposite sex and be successful and believable.
What’s your favorite dish or dessert and why?
Chicken Picatta. I love sauteed foods with citrus and wine. The chicken has to be very thin and cooked only for three minutes.
In what ways do your employees inspire you?
The younger employees I really enjoy because for most of them this is their first job, so they inspire me to teach them how to be great employees no matter where they work in life. They might as well learn from my mistakes, instead of making their own!
How do you create a family-like atmosphere at your community?
Once a month we have family night, where the residents' families come over. We set long rows of tables so everyone gets to know each other and we serve the entire meal on platters or in bowls. The staff is encouraged to join, also with their families during the holidays, especially Easter and Christmas. These are great times for the children to interact with residents.
Tell us about an employee who embodies one of our core values – integrity, respect, responsibility, professionalism or teamwork.
I had an employee named Mitzi who was the Business Office Manager. She reminds me of Radar O'Reilly from MASH. He was only a corporal, but you knew he knew everything about the camp. Mitzi has the answers to almost everything I throw at her. She has great respect for her colleagues and the residents and in turn they trust her for her professionalism and respect her for the wealth of knowledge she brings to Horizon Bay.
At Horizon Bay, we understand that deciding where to live is a big decision that deserves careful thought. We invite you to visit us, stop by for lunch or be a guest at one of our special events or classes. We look forward to meeting you.