Wallick Communities is pleased to welcome Elizabeth Bluhm and Erin Shvetzoff Hennessey to our Board of Directors.

In their new roles as Board Members and experts in the respective fields of affordable housing and senior living, Ms. Bluhm and Ms. Hennessey will advise the senior management team on organizational strategies to help the company meet its goals and objectives.

Elizabeth Bluhm holds 30 years of experience in the affordable housing industry, first on the financial side and, more recently, as a developer. Beginning her career on the financial trading floors of New York City, she eventually headed the low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) equity business of Red Capital Group, a national multifamily lender, investor and syndicator, from 1994 to 2001.

Fittingly, Bluhm’s initial experience as an equity investor for LIHTC was with Wallick, and she collaborated with the company on its own first LIHTC deal. Bluhm quickly developed a passion for affordable housing.

“What has kept me in the business of affordable housing for the last 30 years,” she says, “is that I can see the difference it makes in people’s lives. Every grand opening you go to, you witness people whose lives have been transformed by having a clean, safe, secure place to live. Nothing has been more rewarding than that. And I think that’s exactly what Wallick is setting out to do. It fits perfectly into my notion of what value I can add to the world.”

In 2001, Bluhm opened Red Capital’s San Diego office, offering debt and equity products for affordable and market-rate multifamily projects throughout California, and headed that office until 2010.

Before her years with Red Capital, she was employed by Credit Suisse First Boston in institutional sales in New York and Los Angeles, specializing in municipal bonds. In 2018, she became a project manager and then Development Director at Wakeland Housing and Development, a nonprofit affordable housing developer in San Diego, managing the development and construction of affordable housing projects in Southern California before retiring in 2020.

Ms. Bluhm served as Chair of the Board of Directors of the California Housing Consortium in 2008-2009 and Chair of the Board of Directors of Wakeland Housing from 2015 through 2017.

Bluhm resides in San Diego, CA. Outside of work, she loves travel, French culture, photography and spending time with her four kids and three grandkids. She holds a B.A. in Philosophy from Scripps College and an M.B.A. in Finance from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Erin Shvetzoff Hennessey is a certified gerontologist with 20 years of experience in senior health care. As chief executive officer and principal of Health Dimensions Group, she advises post-acute care providers on operational performance, financial improvement and development of health care strategies.

Hennessey has been connected to the senior care industry since childhood, with her father serving as a nursing home administrator, and her mother volunteering at the same facility. Sharing her parents’ passion, she entered the senior living industry in 1998 as a dietary aid.

Over the past two decades, she has worked in various areas of the industry, including marketing, activities and as an executive and regional director. Beyond her executive role, Hennessey brings hands-on experience as an administrator and senior leader in skilled nursing and senior living facilities across many states.

Hennessey aligns with Wallick’s genuine commitment to embodying the company’s core values through its dedication to associates and the resident experience. She looks forward to impacting residents’ well-being from her position on the Board of Directors.

“We live in a culture that doesn’t always honor age. I’ve been able to see the connection between providing care for great places to live and taking great care of people,” she says. “I would love to see senior living communities become a location of choice for living, for care, for employment in their markets, and as a go-to place to be an associate and a resident.”

Ms. Hennessey was named a 2019 Senior Living Leader Under 40 by Argentum, a national senior living association. She has been named to the LeadingAge Minnesota board of directors and was chosen as a 2021 Women in Business honoree by the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal. Most recently, she was recognized by Modern Healthcare as one of the Top Women Leaders in Healthcare for 2023.

A Minneapolis native, Hennessey enjoys skiing, traveling, and dog rescuing with her husband and daughter. She holds a B.A. in Business Administration and legal studies from the University of St. Thomas and an M.A. in Gerontology from Bethel University.

“I’m thrilled to have Erin and Elizabeth join our board,” says Amy Albery, Chief Executive Officer. “They will bring fresh energy, experience and ideas to the board, to me and to Wallick’s leadership team.”

Please join us in welcoming Ms. Bluhm and Ms. Hennessey to Wallick.

On Tuesday, Wallick was honored and grateful to welcome Congressman Brad Wenstrup to our newly opened Fenner Ridge Apartments community in his district of OH-02. Fenner Ridge is largely funded through low-income housing tax credits and serves as a beacon of hope for families across Southwest Ohio.

Congressman Wenstrup is a lead sponsor of the Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act and a true champion of the Housing Credit.

According to The ACTION Campaign, since its creation in 1986, the Housing Credit has generated $1.42 billion in wages and business income and preserved 7,573 homes in Congressman Wenstrup’s district alone. Nationwide, the Housing Credit has financed over 3.8 million homes for low-income families and individuals.

Pictured above are the Ohio Housing Finance Agency Director of Legislative Affairs, Guy Ford, the Wallick Fenner Ridge Team, and Congressman Wenstrup. Captured below is a special moment with Congressman Wenstrup and Fenner Ridge resident Anita Boivin.

“I thought ‘aha’ – here’s friendship, right here waiting for me!” – Marilyn, current resident at The Crescent

Marilyn’s sentiment reflects the warm and welcoming atmosphere at The Crescent, where our residents aren’t just neighbors in a retirement community – they’re family. Every day brings new opportunities to embrace life to the fullest.

Senior living at The Crescent means:

• Weekly live music performances, local restaurant outings, health seminars, and community socials.
• A beautiful campus, high-end amenities, and a maintenance-free lifestyle.
• Delicious daily meal options.
• Meaningful connections, a genuine sense of ‘home,’ and the freedom to live life on your own terms.

If you’re on the fence about senior living in general, it can be helpful to catch a glimpse of life in the day-to-day.

A retirement community should help you live an enhanced life, retaining your independence but leaving behind potential stresses, loneliness and round-the-house burdens induced by homeownership.

Many of our own residents have found that life is not only better when you’re surrounded by friends and an active community, but “unusually wonderful and far better than anything you can expect.”

Learn what living the life at The Crescent is all about from our residents themselves here:

This past Saturday, The Grove and Oakleaf Village of Sylvania raised the roof in support of the Alzheimer’s Association. Ongoing efforts throughout the year culminated at the Toledo Regional Walk to End Alzheimer’s on October 14. Wallick associates and family members braved the cold and rainy weather to exceed our $2,000 fundraising goal.

In total, The Grove raised $2,957.94!

Ongoing Fundraising Efforts

As a memory care community, The Grove at Oakleaf Village specializes in care for seniors with Alzheimer’s and dementia. Many of our residents and their families have firsthand experience with this disease. The challenges of living with Alzheimer’s go far beyond Wallick’s walls – staggering statistics reveal that 1 in 3 seniors is impacted by Alzheimer’s or another dementia. This disease affects over 6 million Americans.

Leading up to this weekend, fundraising efforts were a labor of love. Just a few months ago, The Grove hosted a Campus Walk to End Alzheimer’s for residents and their families. The event included various activities and walks for families and friends to enjoy with their loved ones. The Alzheimer’s Association joined us to provide the official walk arch and resources. We also had a selection of delicious food trucks (Jikoni Toledo, Toledo Let’s Eat, The Purple Penguin Sweet Treats, Tocayo’s Tacos), entertainment from John Pickle, a photo booth from Funkytown Fotobooth, face-painting, balloon animals, a bake sale and craft sale.

At the end of the event, the three winners of our Duct Tape Fundraiser and the management team were duct-taped to a wall. Residents enjoyed donating $1 to pie their favorite staff.

We are proud of our Grove and Oakleaf teams’ commitment to making a difference and always showing genuine care for our residents.

Thank you to all the staff, residents and family members who showed up to elevate such a worthy cause!

Bryan Lenzo was promoted to Senior Vice President of Human Resources. Furthermore, Paul Koehler has become Chief Strategy and Information Officer. Please join us as we congratulate Paul and Bryan on their roles.

Paul Koehler

Mr. Koehler has been a part of Wallick’s executive team since 2014. He has led and grown our IT, marketing, human resources, and project management departments in various capacities. Once the smallest of the support groups, these teams now make up 1/3 of Wallick’s headquarters.

Paul’s mission to improve our infrastructure began early in his career at Wallick. His first matter of business was integrating Microsoft into associates’ daily work. This measure alone has connected associates at hundreds of properties across multiple states and has simplified how we communicate with each other.

Through Paul’s innovation, Wallick’s corporate office was situated for remote work well ahead of COVID-19. Without previous groundwork on our infrastructure, we would not have been able to continue as we did.

As Chief Strategy and Information Officer, Paul will continue to maintain and improve Wallick’s technological platforms. By leveraging his background in technology and engineering, Paul will work to optimize our current programs and target areas of improvement. He will also strengthen Wallick’s business analytics and artificial intelligence efforts to keep up with the ever-advancing field, so Wallick can continue making informed business decisions with real-time data.

Additionally, Paul will continue to lead and expand the IT, marketing, and project management departments to match the needs of the growing company.

Bryan Lenzo

Mr. Lenzo joined Wallick Communities in February 2020. He was an important part of the organization throughout COVID-19, supporting Wallick as it navigated an unprecedented pandemic. Bryan and HR team members created the Hero Bonus to show gratitude to our essential associates during what was considered the most challenging part of 2020.

From there, he began growing the HR department. A team that was only four members strong just two short years ago now has 20 associates that focus on recruiting, associate relations, total rewards, and learning and development.

Human Resources wasn’t the only department to experience growth. Under Bryan’s leadership, talent acquisition has recruited 2,470 people since 2020, pushing Wallick over the 1,000-associate mark this year.

However, success doesn’t end there. Bryan and his team are determined to improve the associate experience at Wallick Communities. Bryan will work directly with CEO Amy Albery to create a stable work environment that puts associate satisfaction first.