“I applied not knowing what I was getting into,” she says. “In my mind, I thought ‘nursing home’ and had a picture in my mind of what that was like. So I came here for my interview and I looked around, and it was the exact opposite of what I expected.”

Yuen remembers her first day as a server in the dining room. “The very first table I took was three residents. One of them, named Pat Holland, took my hand and said, ‘Don’t worry. You’re going to be just fine.’ That was the start of my journey here.”

Yuen continued to work part time as a server through high school and as she earned her undergraduate degree in Public Health from San Francisco State University. Although she had originally planned to become an RN and work with children, her plans began to change as her grandfather’s health declined. “Because of the type of care I got to witness here [at St. Paul’s], I knew what was dignified and what was demoralizing. I was that annoying granddaughter, always constantly saying, ‘Are you supposed to do this? Are you sure that you’re supposed to pass this off to the residents?’, but it was just because of my love for him. And because of what I saw here, I knew what was right and what was wrong.”

VP of Operations Chris Ichien, who also began his career in senior living in the dining room, was the Executive Director of St. Paul’s Towers after Yuen graduated and as she continued to work as a server and host. “Chris approached me one day and said ‘Hey, there’s a program coordinator job coming up soon. Do you think you’d be interested? I think you’d be good at it.’ And I said, why not?”

Serving as program coordinator gave Yuen the chance to connect with residents in a different way. “When you’re serving every day, you build relationships, you become good friends with the residents and you know their patterns, you know their preferences,” she says. “With the programs job, I got to dig a little deeper. I got to know their history, their life, their hobbies, their interests, and what would drove them. I really enjoyed doing that.”

After six years as program coordinator, Yuen was promoted to Life Enrichment Director, allowing her to work with residents at all levels of care. “Prior to that, I was only focusing on Independent Living, which is great, but I really want to expand my horizons. We made it a point to make sure everybody has the same opportunities and everybody is included.”

She participated in the EMERGE leadership development program offered by LeadingAge California, and she began a Masters in Gerontology program at San Francisco State University. After an 8-hour day at St. Paul’s Towers, she would head to San Francisco for classes. “It was a long day, but I really had fun,” says Yuen. “I saw a bigger picture and had more goals I wanted to fulfill.” She also worked as an Administrator in Training while working towards her Masters degree.

In February 2020, as she was preparing for graduation in May, the health care administrator position at St. Paul’s Towers opened up. Yuen took on the role, working primarily in the Skilled Nursing area and with the clinical team.

“I was very excited to be given that opportunity,” she says. “Again, that opened up a brand new set of opportunities, where I could serve the residents of the different capacity. Whereas before I got to help them with their interests, enriching their lives with programming and keeping them engaged, now I get to do a little bit more clinical work, which was what I wanted to do when I wanted to be an RN. I felt like I got to fulfill that as well.”

In January 2021, when Executive Director Mary Linde announced she would be leaving, she encouraged Yuen to apply. “I knew that was something I wanted to do. I just didn’t know if I wanted to do it right now. I thought about it over the weekend, and I said why not apply? I feel like I’ve been training with Mary for a reason. She has given me a lot of opportunities to learn, to make mistakes, and to grow. I felt like that was all leading up to this point.” After interviewing for the position, Connie began in her new role as Executive Director in March.

During her time at St. Paul’s Towers, Yuen says the biggest thing she’s learned is “there is no cookie cutter way of doing things. What worked last month does not work now. You always learn to adapt. You get to know the people you’re serving and you just embrace it.

“Right now, we have a very different group of people moving in. Some of them are quite a bit younger and they have different needs and wants, whereas when I first started everybody was very formal. You just have to keep in tune with what’s going on in the outside world, as well as in here.” Being an Executive Director is “a lot of responsibility, but it means that people are trusting me to do what’s best for them,”

Yuen still remembers the advice she got on her first day, when a resident held her hand and told her it was going to be OK. “I remember seeing her just a couple days before she passed. I went to go visit her in her room. She held my hand and she said it’s going to be okay. Sometimes I just have to remind myself it’s hard right now but it’s going to be okay because you’re doing what’s best for everybody.”

“For me it’s more than more than just the job,” says Yuen. “It’s maintaining these relationships and making sure that these final years are full of dignity. That’s a huge thing for me.”

If you would like to learn more about St. Paul’s Towers, please call 510.891.8542 or use the contact us form here.

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“It means a lot to be able to see all the hands and hearts that have been working to make this vision a reality,” said Executive Director Christina Spence as she introduced the project team, a collaborative effort including residents, staff, and specialists.

San Francisco Towers resident Richard “Dick” Wilmington reflected on “nearly a decade” working towards a memory care neighborhood. “The long history reflects the struggle with both state and local regulations, and with the restrictive realities of dealing with the conversion of a fully utilized existing space,” he explained. Wilmington’s spouse, Bob, struggled with aphasia and memory loss and ultimately spent his final year at a different community with a dedicated program for those with cognitive impairments that helped his spouse “avoid those three terrible ‘A’s’ often suffered by those with these conditions: anxiety, agitation, and anger.”

San Francisco Towers Memory Care Unit will be located on the second level of the building in the East Tower Mezzanine. With 10 single units and two double units, the neighborhood will include a common area with dining, sun room, study, and tub/spa center. Construction is expected to be completed by spring of 2022 and the neighborhood will be open after review and approval by California’s Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development (OSHPD). OSHPD has already approved the plans for this neighborhood as well as the memory care neighborhood at other Covia communities.

“I think back to our very first memory care neighborhood at Los Gatos Meadows,” said Katharine Miller, Executive Director of the Covia Foundation. “It is called Maggie’s Place because a long term resident at Los Gatos really, really cared about the fact that she had neighbors and friends that needed a memory care neighborhood. When Maggie King passed away, she left her entire estate to the Foundation to build out our very first memory care neighborhood. I wanted to say thank you to all the people that have cared about their loved ones, their neighbors and their friends to make our memory care neighborhoods happen.”

“It’s been a long time to get here,” said Christina Spence, “so we wanted to take a moment and celebrate the good, celebrate that we’re here in this moment. This project would never be moving forward if it weren’t for all the support that we’ve received from our partners.”

As the Reverend Wilmington concluded, “So here we are. Now we have begun…we can make this a peaceful and comfortable community in honor of those lost personalities we loved.”

If you would like to learn more about San Francisco Towers please call 415.447.5527 or use the contact us form here.

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The merger is expected to take place March 31, 2021, pending approval of the California Attorney General and the California Department of Social Services.

Covia and FASE have worked closely together since September 2018 when Covia began a management agreement with FASE to provide support and oversight for many of Friends House’s administrative functions. FASE and Covia agree that the merger of Friends House into Covia will ensure a financially attainable option for non-profit senior living in Sonoma County.

Covia is committed to the heritage and purpose of Friends House, including its Quaker values and cultural standards for simplicity, stewardship, integrity, equality, community, and peace.

Frequently Asked Questions are posted here. If you have additional questions, contact Friends House Associate Executive Director Jaclyn Carenbauer at jcarenbauer@covia.org.

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The new affiliation will create one of the nation’s top not-for-profit organizations providing senior living, affordable housing and community services for more than 10,000 people. The combined organization will ensure long-term stability, achieve economic benefits, manage costs, and scale and access resources across 54 communities.

“Our affiliation with Front Porch creates a strong organization going forward that will support the changing needs of our residents,” said Vincent Forte, Chairman of the Covia Communities Board of Directors.

“Aligning our leadership, experience and expertise creates an opportunity to better meet the evolving expectations of a growing population of older adults,” said Oliver Wesson, Chairman of the Front Porch Board of Directors.

Covia CEO and President Kevin Gerber and Front Porch CEO John Woodward will remain in their positions during the transition. The boards agreed to retain the Front Porch name initially and appoint John Woodward as CEO of the combined entity. Kevin Gerber will leave upon the close of the affiliation, expected in early 2021.

“Combining with Covia strengthens our long-held goal of building strong and engaging communities, connecting people with the services and relationships they need to thrive,” Woodward said. “Under Kevin’s leadership, Covia has raised the bar for our industry and is the ideal partner to provide even greater service to all of our communities.”

“Our collective geographic footprints and service offerings will maximize Front Porch’s capacity to grow and diversify our reach and impact,” Gerber said. “I’m confident that under John’s guidance our affiliation will be a success.”

The affiliation is subject to the receipt of regulatory approvals and is expected to close in early 2021. Front Porch and Covia will continue to operate their organizations and their respective communities separately until the affiliation is approved.

For more information, please visit our webpage at covia.org/affiliation.

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