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Ken Jenson
Immediate Past Chair
Ken Jenson is the owner of Amada Senior Care. Amada has been in business for just over 5 years. They are a State Licensed Home Care company that loves to work with Seniors. They were just voted Best in the Springs for 2017 in two categories. Amada specializes in helping Seniors with Activities of Daily living. Ken has coached his kids in Little league for the past 29 years. He also coached YMCA basketball for 31 years. He has been a scout master and has worked with youth his whole life. Before Amada, Ken owned a company that renovated military housing all over the USA. “Serving Seniors is the best thing I have ever done. I love working with Families and helping solve problems. This is the best job I have ever had”.
Magdalene Lim, PsyD.
Board Member
Dr. Magdalene Lim is a licensed clinical psychologist and Director of the UCCS Aging Center. She is a Medicare provider and oversees the clinical training of graduate-level geropsychology students who provide both psychological interventions and cognitive assessments to older adults and their families. A graduate of the Palo Alto University, PGSP-Stanford Psy.D. Consortium Program, Dr. Lim completed her postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Rochester Medical Center and holds a post-degree certificate in family intervention. In her two-year postdoctoral residency, she provided integrated services at a family medicine residency clinic and served as an educator for internal medicine residents at an affiliated hospital caring for geriatric patients. Other interprofessional collaborative work included a team approach to caring for oncology patients in a department of surgery. Specialty interests include geropsychology, neuropsychology (geriatric population), multiculturalism, and collaborative care with interprofessional teams.
Mary Swantek
Board Member
Mary Swantek is the Operations and Program Director of the Colorado Springs Senior Center and has been working at the center since 2014. The Colorado Springs Senior Center is an innovative partnership with the City of Colorado Springs and the YMCA. Mary attended Abilene Christian University where she earned a Bachelor's degree in Exercise Science and a certificate in Gerontology. Mary has experience working in Continuing Care Retirement Communities running their activity programs in addition to working in non medical home healthcare. She has a gift for working with older adults and it has been her passion since she was a child. She is dedicated to reduce social isolation for older adults by getting them to know themselves, be connected with others and find a purpose in their later years.
Martha Barton
Board Member
Martha Barton has a professional background in several levels of health care and nonprofit organization leadership. The majority of her career began with various nursing positions, education, and health Insurance. Most prevalent was her leadership of Pikes Peak Hospice & Palliative Care (PPHPC) for thirty years. With excellent staff at this nonprofit organization, she expanded (and collaborated) with numerous care providers within our region. Martha also held membership and Officer positions for the Hospice and Palliative Care Association of the Rockies, and the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (and its Foundation). Drawing on academic experience in nursing and leadership, she presented public education about quality end-of-life care in local, regional and national circles. In 2007, Martha was one of the Founders of Hospice Executives Roundtable – a collection of industry experts sharing best practices of twelve exceptional hospices across the country. Martha retired in May of2017. Retirement has brought opportunities for her to serve several non-profit organizations in our region. She is proud to do volunteer work with Innovations in Aging, Colorado Springs Health Foundation, Pikes Peak Community College Foundation, Colorado Springs Philharmonic, and other nonprofits in our region. Beyond the joy of community service Martha enjoys watching grandchildren grow, reading good books, regular exercise and all of the wonderful arts in our community.
Hayley Gleason
Board Member
Hayley is a Gerontologist with expertise in aging policy, long-term care and the direct care workforce. She currently serves as the Director of the Strategic Outcomes Division at the Department of Health Care Policy & Financing. Prior to this role, she was the Department's Older Adult Policy Advisor and served as the Interim Executive Director and Assistant Executive Director of the Home Care Aide Council. Hayley has her doctorate in Gerontology from UMass Boston where her research focuses on the recruitment, retention, training and supervision of the home care aide workforce. She has presented and published extensively on the direct care workforce, including speaking at over 50 state and national conferences and publishing in the Journal of Aging and Mental Health, Geriatric Nursing, and the Journal of Pain and Symptom Management.
Jonathan Liebert
Board Member
CEO and Executive Director of the Better Business Bureau of Southern Colorado and the Colorado Institute for Social Impact, Jonathan is a Colorado Springs native. Journal. During his tenure at the BBB, Jonathan has increased awareness of the importance of integrity and trust in business and has revitalized the BBB brand that has played a crucial role in Southern Colorado for 40 years.Jonathan is an Adjunct Professor in the School of Business at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs and currently serves on the Business Advisory Committee for the Colorado Secretary of State, the Board of the Colorado Nonprofit Association and several other key community boards. Jonathan has a Masters in Counseling Psychology and Counselor Education from the University of Colorado Health and Sciences Center.
Daniel O'Rear
Board Member
Daniel joined the Board in 2018. He is the Executive Director of the Myron Stratton Home Foundation, the oldest private foundation in Colorado. Prior to arriving at his current position, Daniel spent 22 years at Goodwill Industries serving as Chief Financial Officer and later as President of the Goodwill Industrial Services Corp. Daniel has a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, an M.B.A. from the University of Colorado and is a CPA. Daniel resides in Colorado Springs with his wife Sandy. They have three children and one grand-daughter all living in Colorado.
Lee Patke
Vice Chair
Lee has twenty-eight years in corporate and non-profit settings that combined business operations, execution of strategic plans, workforce readiness, and service to clients across a variety of settings. Lee has served as Executive Director for Greccio Housing in Colorado Springs since 2010. He earned a Bachelor’s of Arts degree from Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, TX, and a Master’s of Science in Social Work for the University of Texas in Arlington.
Paula Pollet
Board Member
Paula has been part of the investment management and fiduciary community of Colorado Springs for over 40 years and she is currently Vice President of Wealth Management at Ent Credit Union. She is a member and Past President of the Colorado Springs Estate Planning Council and attends the El Paso County Bar Probate Section. Paula is a board member and immediate Past President of IIAC, current Secretary of the Cheyenne Village Board, President Emeritus of the Pikes Peak Community Foundation, a member of the Pikes Peak Library District Foundation Board and a member of the Southern Colorado Women‘s Chamber of Commerce having served on their Foundation board also.
Shawn Raintree
At Large Representative
Shawn brings forty years of experience on the leading edge of change in health care, nationally and regionally. He has served as CEO of new startups, business models or turnarounds in diverse locations across the country. In Colorado Springs, Shawn led the successful growth of Kaiser Permanente in southern Colorado for ten years. He was also a senior advisor in the design of Colorado's health insurance exchange. Shawn has served as a board member for multiple community-based nonprofit organizations. He is currently Board Chair of AspenPointe, the largest provider of behavioral health services in the region. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the USAF Academy, and a Master of Science degree from the University of Colorado.
Dayton Romero
Chair
Dayton currently serves as a Director of Senior Assistance Programs at Silver Key Senior Services. He holds a B.A. in Psychology with a Minor in Gerontology from the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs. Currently, he is pursuing a Master’s Degree in Public Health with a concentration in Leadership & Public Practice at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.
BJ Scott
Board Member
Co-Founder
In December 2014, BJ stepped down from a 20 year career at Peak Vista Community Health Centers that included ten years as its President & CEO as well as Executive Director of the Peak Vista Foundation, a separate nonprofit that she helped form in 2005. She currently serves on the following Boards: Innovations in Aging - an organization she co-founded; The Colorado Springs Health Foundation - a founding Board member serving 3 years as chair; and the USBank Advisory Board.
Judy Scott, PhD RN
Board Member
Judy Scott teaches community and public health to nursing students at UCCS. Her teaching goals include improvement in geriatric content in nursing programs and interest in professional practice with older adults. Her research interests are aging in place, and cognitive and sensory losses related to adjustment to assisted living and community settings. She provides connections between the university and local healthcare and service organizations
Sarah Steph, CPA
Treasurer
Sarah joined the IIAC board in 2017 out of a desire to elevate thought around aging and to serve the local community. At that time she was closely supporting an aging family member and so has been able to bring her personal experiences to bear on the discussions and work that IIAC is carrying out. Her background in accounting and finance have enabled her to serve as Board Treasurer. Sarah obtained a Master of Business Administration from the University of Colorado Colorado Springs in 2012 and has been a licensed CPA since 2013. Sarah worked in the retail banking industry in Colorado Springs before spending five years in public accounting where she worked as an auditor with a primary focus on the not-for-profit sector. She is currently the land development controller for a local home building company. These positions have been beneficial in providing connection and insight into Colorado area businesses, organizations, and individuals, and her professional and personal experiences have shaped Sarah's understanding of and love for this community. Sarah loves to see others thrive and feels that the work of IIAC is importantly creating space and improving the environment for this in Colorado Springs and El Paso County amongst the aging population.
David Lord
Board Member
David Lord is a graduate of Rollins College in 1969 with BA Political Science and a MBA from the Rol-lins Crummer Business School in 1971. For most of his professional life he worked in higher education financial administration which included 7 years as the Business Manager at Rollins and 19 years as Busi-ness Manager at Colorado College. He did spend three years with the Griffis Residential in Denver help-ing develop real estate investment funds for acquisition of multifamily housing before retiring in 2009. In his retirement Lord has served on a number of Colorado Springs non profit Boards and serves as a Trustee at Rollins College. He has a special interest in aging issues and helped start IIAC, served on Silver Key Board, and now Chairs the Housing Domain of Age Friendly Colorado Springs. He enjoys travel and golf.
Gail Nehls
Board Secretary
Gail M. Nehls is a respected leader in identifying and implementing innovative mobility solutions for specialized and rural transportation. In just the past two years she has opened two rural, public routes, acquired management of a volunteer driver program, launched a mobility solution for behavioral health rides, and collaborated with regional transit providers to adopt new software implementation for more effective and efficient specialized transportation. In 2016, through her leadership efforts, NEMT legislation was passed in Colorado, opening this regulation to more providers. Nehls has been CEO of Envida, formerly Amblicab, since 2011, and she has grown the nonprofit agency from a budget of less than $400,000 to more than $5 million, expanded its geographic reach from 200 to nearly 2,000 square miles, and embraced a goal to more than double again over the next year. Envida promotes access and supports independent living with dignity, and with this vision Nehls expanded the agency’s services in 2016 to integrate homecare, solidly placing the agency in the forefront of a national movement that recognizes transportation and healthcare’s inseparable ties with access to care and social determinants of health. Nehls has served as chair of the local mobility coordinating committee (MCC) in the Pikes Peak Region and is actively involved in the Age Friendly Initiative in Colorado Springs. In 2019 Envida’s rural efforts were published in the July issue of METRO Magazine, and the Colorado Association of Transit Agencies (CASTA) recognized Envida with an award for Best Outreach Program or Project. Nehls has been a featured session speaker at RTAP, CTAA, and SWTA conferences. She has addressed the Colorado Legislature on vital transportation issues such as NEMT and rising vehicle insurance rates, and she is regularly asked for her transportation expertise with local, state, and even federal agencies. Prior to her role with envida, Nehls served in various positions with other human service nonprofits, and she has an extensive background in management, sales support, and software development. She has her master’s degree in public administration from University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, and a bachelor’s degree in business logistics from Pennsylvania State University, University Park.