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October 11, 2024

As our Association continues to pause and reflect on 35 years of support for aging services providers, so too are our previous Executive Directors reflecting on their time with LeadingAge Tennessee. These leaders were instrumental in developing and nurturing partnerships, giving LeadingAge Tennessee (formerly TNAHSA) the necessary momentum and guidance to continue serving the providers, residents, and caregivers of our great state.

Carrie Ermshar shares her thoughts about her time in the director seat:

LOOKING BACK ON 35 YEARS
REFLECTIONS

What was your most impactful moment or experience as a LeadingAge Tennessee executive director?

There were several big milestones that laid some strong foundations for the current landscape. A moment that stands out to me was the 2010 annual meeting. We had worked tirelessly to bring members of all aspects of aging together, partnering with everyone from large CCRC providers, ACLF, HUD, and independent aging organizations. That year we also had the Council on Aging of Middle Tennessee join us with some of their members. There was a lot of momentum for the Association during those years. CHOICES legislation had passed, and a primary focus was bringing providers together for a unified message. We had a packed room of close to 300 people. Looking out at the crowd of so many familiar faces, those in the trenches with you, and new faces joining in on the message was so powerful. It was a rewarding feeling of “yes, this can be done.” It was electric.

Working with members can be so rewarding. Can you share a special member memory or highlight?

You really can’t go through the history of the association without thinking of or mentioning MaryAnna Womeldorf. Her leadership shaped so much of the connection of aging services, "leading the way out of silos" before we even used that term. The years of regulatory issues and ownership changes for McKendree Village were transitioning for our landscape. Honoring MaryAnna for her work with the Association was a moment of all worlds coming together for me professionally - representing a pioneer of what is now a common unity in membership - aging services.

When you considered the future of LeadingAge Tennessee during your tenure, what did you imagine it would be?

I’ve always seen LeadingAge Tennessee exactly as the tagline indicated - creating the future of aging services. From the small steps of member engagement to the large legislative initiatives, I’ve seen the foundation of that vision stay true and personal - always keeping in mind what we would want for our own families. The future would be a plethora of aging service communities working together for one purpose of aging gracefully in the place called home.

What are you most proud of during your work with LeadingAge Tennessee?

Two big things:
- Member engagement - there were so many from different aspects of aging services working closely together.
- Establishing the Association as a key stakeholder for regulatory and legislative issues - we had opportunity to be in the right place at the right time. Hospice legislation for ACLF, CHOICES, SNF reimbursement were all hot issues, and we established ourselves as the “go to” organization with regulatory agencies and legislative issues. In the words of David Glascoe, who was our Board chair, “nothing like a crisis to bring us to the table.”

PLENARY SESSION +
STATE NIGHT OUT

The LeadingAge TN Plenary Session will have something for everyone! We are packing some very special moments into our time together on Monday, October 28, 4:00-7:00, at The Omni. Our state-specific session, from 4:00-5:30, will include our LATN Annual Business Meeting, featuring uplifting words from LeadingAge Board Chair Roberto Muñiz, updates from the Health Facilities Commission, and exciting presentations from our inaugural Leadership Academy. There is no cost for our Provider Members to attend, so please register to join us (regardless if you are already registered for LeadingAge's Annual Meeting + EXPO) so we can even if you aren't attending the entire show) so we can finalize our food and beverage needs!