Terry Spitznagel always knew she wanted a career that would allow her to be of service to others. But she knew she had a keen business sense and sought a path that would enable her to leverage both hard and soft skills. “I’ve been blessed with a career path where my business acumen met my heart,” Spitznagel said.

In February, Terry celebrated her first anniversary of employment with United Church Homes as Senior Vice President and Chief Growth Officer. She is responsible for all UCH senior living and affordable housing operations and leads efforts to grow existing and new business lines.

Before joining UCH, Spitznagel worked in various leadership roles for a leading senior living provider, and has more than 25 years experience in healthcare operations. She worked with United Church Homes in her previous role and several industry collaborations with Leading Age Ohio.

Spitznagel sees three factors that will drive UCH’s future direction: ensuring safe and sound communities; the use of technology to keep residents connected with family and friends; and a commitment to being the catalyst to help residents live in alignment with their dreams.

“The senior living industry is changing rapidly,” Spitznagel said. “UCH has a solid strategic plan for how we can continue to evolve our services to not only meet – but exceed – what older adults are looking for.”

Well established in the independent living, assisted living, and affordable housing markets, UCH will now add middle market opportunities to our future growth strategy. “Our path to continued success is understanding our existing and potential residents’ needs,” Spitznagel said.

Additionally, Spitznagel is spearheading an increased role in service and personal care coordination through two new service lines called UCH Engage and UCH Cares. UCH Engage employs service coordinators that act as a personal care advisor to residents and family members and connect older adults with services they need to live a healthy and full life. Personal Care coordinators serve as part of UCH Cares, and assist older adults with personal care activities as they are living with physical disabilities or a chronic health condition.

“Enriching the lives of seniors – helping them enjoy lives of purpose – is what UCH is all about, ” Spitznagel said. “My goal is to ensure that UCH can sustain its mission for another 100 years. The key to continued success is providing each resident with a personalized abundant aging experience.”