Warm Hearth Foundation's Employee Growth and Development fund awards scholarships to four employees thanks to donors.
Courtesy of Warm Hearth Village
From left to right: Alia Zaro, Life Enrichment Manager, Brett Sears, Life Enrichment Associate, and Alison Trigg, Administrator, all of Showalter Center.
Thanks to the generosity of donors to the Warm Hearth Foundation’s Employee Growth & Development fund, four Warm Hearth employees across the Village received a total of $8,500 in scholarships ranging from $1,000 to $2,500 for fall 2022. Scholarship funds will help one recipient pay for a job-related certification in Life Enrichment. Others are undergraduate and graduate students at universities and will use their scholarships toward their tuition and textbooks. This is the third year the foundation has been able to help fund employees’ academic and professional goals and to date it has provided $29,000 to 19 employees.
Tom Pierce, Warm Hearth Foundation Board of Trustees Chair, said “We were very impressed by the educational programs the applicants are pursuing, and we wish each of them the best with their studies and endeavors. The Foundation is proud to support village employees and let them know just how important they are to our success!”
“I am very thankful for the opportunity to further my education,” said Jonathan Tate, who is taking courses in business administration for a bachelor of science degree. Tate was recently promoted as an Human Resources Generalist from an Activity Director.
Brent Sears, Life Enrichment Associate in Showalter Center (SC), (pictured), said he is very excited that his employer is so generous. “ I didn’t know how I was going to be able to pay for this certification and these funds helped tremendously,” he added.
Scholars are listed below.
- Megan Harrell (SC Dining): $2,500 – pursuing her Master’s Degree in Marketing and Spanish at Virginia Tech
- Brent Sears (SC Life Enrichment): $1,000 – growing/improving his skills in his career path in Life Enrichment by taking the National Activity Professional Training Course through Activity Director University, which includes a 75-hour training course, a 12 hour CE course, and Certification Exam
- Jonathan Tate (Human Resources): $2,500 – pursuing his B.S. in Business Administration at Liberty University
- Brandon Wells (Kroontje Health Care Center Dining): $2,500 – pursuing his B.S. in Physics at Virginia Tech
Warm Hearth Village is a nonprofit senior living community in Blacksburg that provides a full continuum of living options on our campus and in the home.