Liberty Lutheran Services was well represented at this year’s annual PANPHA conference as four staff professionals presented unique and inspiring workshops.  PANPHA, an Association of Pennsylvania Nonprofit Senior Services, represents 350 organizations throughout the state, together serving over 62,000 persons in facility based settings and tens of thousands more in their own homes or community settings.

 

From Inspiration to Innovation was the theme of the 2008 PANPHA Annual Conference, held in Hershey, PA.  Workshop presenters shared their expertise and excitement with others and provided highlights of innovative work to inspire others towards excellence in service to older adults. 

 

Christopher Ridenhour, Director of Core Competency Training at Liberty, presented a half day pre-conference workshop entitled Creating a Vibrant Service Culture.  Using many of the Liberty standards for basic staff accountability, effective communication, leadership and empowerment, Christopher’s interactive session explored strategies that ultimately affect staff engagement and organizational culture.

 

Christopher, along with Liberty’s President and CEO, Luanne Fisher, PhD, co-presented another workshop called Using Transformative Training and Development to Transform Your Culture. This presentation received a standing ovation from attendees, and was based on experiences with the LLS Core Competency Training.  Main tenets of the program explained how innovative and dynamic staff training can inspire and transform your workforce culture and encourage commitment, professional relationships, and retention to ensure the highest quality of care for our residents.  

 

Presenters Larry Gershman, VP of Human Resources and Administration and David Brown, Director of Human Resources for LLS and Paul’s Run Retirement Community, offered Using Talent Development as a Framework for Organizational Strength. Participants of the session gained a deeper understanding of the impact of human resource systems on financial, managerial and cultural aspects of an organization’s sustainability and growth.

 

Presenter John Barnum, VP and CFO for Liberty, was joined by Jeff Boland, Partner, Beard Miller Company of Harrisburg, for What’s in a NOM: The Value of Using Net Operating Margins.  The content of this workshop demonstrated how to use Net Operating Margins (NOM) to evaluate operational performance and “best practices” in aging services to improve performance. 

 

To learn more about the wide array of faith-based services delivered by the Liberty Lutheran Services team of world-class professionals, visit our homepage at www.libertylutheran.org.

 

PHILADELPHIA, PA (JANUARY 31, 2007) – Luanne B. Fisher, President and CEO of Liberty Lutheran Services (LLS), is pleased to announce that Liberty was chosen to participate in a coalition of Lutheran organizations to launch a one-year pilot project to address aging and caregiving issues.  The Aging in Community Initiative will build new models for in-home, non-medical care for aging individuals, and also support in-home caregivers.  The collaboration includes Lutheran Services in America (LSA), 14 Lutheran social ministry organizations across the nation, and the Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Foundation.  

 

The initiative utilizes an “open source” approach to distill best practices from current programs being used by social ministry organizations in their services to the aging and caregivers. By bringing the organizations together to learn from each other, the initiative seeks to develop and test new hybrid models that result in individuals remaining in their homes longer and caregivers feeling less burdened.

 

“Liberty’s selection for participation in this initiative is a great honor. Our experience with Caregiver Circles, a support and educational outreach program started in 2004, has given us many valuable insights about the many challenges for caregivers. The initiative will be developed and managed by our in-home service, Liberty at Home, and will give us the opportunity to enhance the Caregiver Circles and offer caregiver training and day respite services,’’ stated Fisher.

 

Liberty at Home, one of six affiliates of LLS, provides non-medical services to older adults who choose to remain living at home.  Services are tailored to meet individual needs, including housekeeping, meal preparation, transportation, and personal care services.  By supporting seniors in Southeastern Pennsylvania, Liberty at Home provides a necessary benefit to a rapidly growing elder population.  To learn more about Liberty at Home, please call 215-643-6496 or 610-566-3791 or visit www.libertyathome.org. 

 

 

PHILADELPHIA, PA (NOVEMBER 27, 2007) – Luanne B. Fisher, President and CEO of Liberty Lutheran Services (LLS), is pleased to announce its affiliation with the Mary J. Drexel Home, located in Bala Cynwyd, Montgomery County beginning January 1, 2008.  Drexel Home joins Liberty’s existing senior Affiliates: Artman Lutheran Home in Ambler, Paul’s Run Retirement Community in Northeast Philadelphia and Liberty at Home in all five counties of Southeastern PA to provide personalized levels of care for aging adults.

 

Drexel Home was founded in 1878 by John D. Lankenau in honor of his wife Mary Johanna Drexel Lankaneau.  For over a century, the 66-resident facility has been addressing the needs of the elderly population on the Main Line and beyond through Assisted Living and Skilled Nursing levels of care.  LLS has been providing oversight to Drexel Home’s Financial Services and Information Technology systems for the past eight years.

 

“It’s gratifying to announce the soon-to-be affiliation between LLS and the Mary J. Drexel Home,” stated Fisher.  “Providing care for aging seniors is a major part of the mission of LLS, and our entire organization is thrilled to expand our services into the southeastern Montgomery County market.”

 

Liberty Lutheran Services is a broad array of faith-based services delivered by a team of world-class employees.  Comprised of the non-profit organizations of Artman Lutheran Home, Paul’s Run Retirement Community, Lutheran Children and Family Service, and Liberty at Home, LLS serves approximately eighteen thousand individuals annually throughout Southeastern Pennsylvania.  The organizations of LLS have a combined 200 years of service for children, families, and older adults.  Caring communities are built by Lutheran congregations to serve all people, regardless of age, gender, race, religion, country of origin, ethnicity, disability, or sexual orientation.  For more information about Liberty Lutheran Services and their mission, please visit www.libertylutheran.org.