Vintage Care leader lauded for persevering during virus pandemic

Image
  • Shelley Kaiser, left, chief operating officer for SRI Management, presents Angela Wynkoop, executive director of Vintage Care Senior Living in Palatka, with the company’s 2020 Executive Director of the Year award earlier this year.
    Shelley Kaiser, left, chief operating officer for SRI Management, presents Angela Wynkoop, executive director of Vintage Care Senior Living in Palatka, with the company’s 2020 Executive Director of the Year award earlier this year.
  • Positively Putnam FL
    Positively Putnam FL
Body

The executive director for a Palatka assisted living facility said her top priority in 2020 was keeping residents safe and happy amid coronavirus restrictions. 

And it paid off for Angela Wynkoop, executive director of Vintage Care Senior Living.

She was named the 2020 Executive Director of the Year in January from SRI Management, a company that specializes in senior living and manages Vintage Care. 

“When you become recognized and those type of things happen, you feel like, ‘Oh, OK. All the sleepless nights, all of the hard work, they realize it,” Wynkoop said. “And that means a great deal to me.”

Although the executive director has only been in her position for a year, Wynkoop said she has worked as a nurse for nearly 28 years. “Through all of the challenges and changes of the past year, Angela Wynkoop of Vintage Care has embodied the core values of SRI Management, consistently demonstrating an unending focus on care, compassion and commitment to her residents, their families and the Vintage Care staff,” said Shelley Kaiser, chief operations officer of SRI Management. “The entire corporate team is honored to recognize Angela as our Executive Director of the Year, a much-deserved award recognizing her amazing ability to lead through service and adapt to every situation with grace.”

Wynkoop said the height of the pandemic kept her and Vintage Care employees busy. 

“It was a trying year,” she said. 

The Vintage Care team worked around the clock updating concerned family members, who at the time could not visit their loved ones because of COVID-19 safety precautions. The team was vigilant in checking temperatures, keeping patients upbeat despite visitations being suspended and following recommended guidelines to prevent the virus from infiltrating the facility. 

“I was very upfront (with employees). ‘This is going to be bad. We’re going to have to reign in what we do. Our residents aren’t going to be able to be as social as they were. But please, wear your mask when you’re out,’” Wynkoop said. “… They did a great job. They really listened and wanted to protect the residents and themselves.”

And for Wynkoop, the coronavirus pandemic hit home. 

She said she lost her 79-year-old father to coronavirus at the start of the pandemic last year. 

“But we made it through,” Wynkoop said. 

She said Vintage Care would not be the same without all the employees who work at the facility. Wynkoop said everyone functions like a family. 

As of Tuesday, she said the Palatka facility had no coronavirus cases reported in employees or residents. And family members are allowed to visit residents of Vintage Care. In fact, Wynkoop encouraged it because residents are happy when they see their loved ones. 

She said most of the facility’s residents have been fully vaccinated and received their second shot two weeks ago. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a person is considered completely vaccinated two weeks after receiving the final dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. 

“We are headed in the right direction,” Wynkoop said. 

 

Copyright 2021 by Palatka Daily News - all rights reserved.