Annie’s journey at Community Living began when she was a college intern studying social work before deciding to go a different route. “I did my internship with Community Living and quickly knew where I needed to be,” she says. “That was right here working with the coolest population of people.” She accepted a role as a Coordinator in the Support Services for Adults program where she fell in love with the people she worked with and those she supported. “You build strong bonds with those you support, and care about them deeply.”

Annie’s work looks different every day, and she likes that aspect of her role. “Not many work environments host a tattoo and karaoke day,” she jokes. She also recognizes that along with the amazing days come challenging ones. “There are not many days that look the same. Some of my days are busier than others. Some are very emotionally hard,” she says. But having hard days has helped her become the person she is today. “This job has taught me so much about different personalities, needs, and what families go through.” This has also benefitted her family. “In 2022, I started providing more care to my father who had dementia. During this time, I was able to help my mom with different tricks and tips on caregiving. I really learned how to advocate for him when he had hospital stays and when he was in a memory care unit. I wouldn’t have been able to do that without the knowledge of this agency and job.”

In 2022, Annie stepped into a leadership role at the Jack Boschert Center in Community Living’s Support Services for Adults program. She’s now the Center Manager and uses the skills she’s developed on the job to support and encourage her staff. “As a manager, every day I strive to give not only my staff, but the participants, a meaningful, happy, and healthy workplace.” Annie has made it a goal to set a positive tone and get to know each one of her staff members as an individual, acknowledging that everyone comes with different goals and interests, and that their differences are essential to the success of the Center. “This job can be very hard both emotionally and physically at times, and I want to make sure that I can help them in any way.” She also says she’s beyond thankful to her boss, who is “so fun, upbeat, positive, and encouraging.”

To help her growth as a leader, Annie applied to be a mentee with the ATHENA Mentoring Program in 2023. “I am so thankful for Community Living supporting me through this new stage in my life. Without ATHENA and my mentor within the company, I am not sure I would have made it this far in a management role,” she says. In fact, Annie was so successful in the program that she applied and was accepted to serve as a mentor for the 2024 program. “Annie makes a positive difference in our organization each day and is committed to professional growth and development,” said Jenn, Director of Support Services for Adults at Community Living. “She’s a strong, positive leader who leads by example to bring out the best in the team. She’s an absolute joy to work with.”