Candas Schouvieller, CEO/Administrator
October 1st begins a new fiscal year for Oak Hills Living Center. Reflecting on the 2021-2022 fiscal year I paused and thought of the analogy between the windshield and rear-view mirror. It is beneficial to take a small amount of time to reflect on the past, however most of our time should be focused on what is ahead of us. While we continue to work through the financing process for our expansion, we welcome a new physical, speech and occupational therapy provider, Blue Stone Therapy. The Blue Stone Therapy Team will not only provide therapy services to our residents, but also look forward to offering outpatient therapy services to our community. We are happy to again offer this service as our residents benefit from the Blue Stone Way! They are doing something right with a 98% employee retention rate.
In September, we welcomed Megan Oswald, RN, MSN to our Oak Hills family as our Staff Development and OnTrack Nursing Program Coordinator. Megan brings not only clinical experience, but also has been a nursing instructor at Rasmussen College. In addition to ensuring our staff development needs are met she will lead and grow our OnTrack nursing assistant training program. This way we can train our newly hired nursing assistant trainees at Oak Hills and work with schools to educate our youth on careers in healthcare. You may have read about the Next Generation Nursing Assistant Training Program funded by the State of Minnesota, unfortunately, we have not received any staff from this program.
We recently learned about changes to the CDC guidance for COVID testing, PPE and other requirements. We are pleased to see these requirements continue to loosen based on the transmission rate in our county. We will continue to keep you posted on changes. Our Infection Prevention and Control nurse, Anna MacHolda, RN, BSN, jumped into her position this past March and has done a tremendous job leading us through some challenging obstacles this year.
Meet The Blue Stone Therapy Team
Jolene Denn, Director of Clinical Services
Jolene received her Master’s degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders in 2009, with a minor in Gerontology. During college Jolene worked as a Certified Nursing Assistant in a skilled nursing facility, which helped shape her love for working in the long-term care industry and passion of serving the older adult population. Jolene furthered her academic pursuits by obtaining her Master’s in Healthcare Management and Administration in 2017.
Jonelda Moe, Regional Director of Operations
Jonelda graduated from Lake Area Technical Institute in 2007. Very early into her career, she found a strong passion for serving the geriatric population. As an internal company traveler, Jonelda was privileged to practice across all therapy settings including inpatient, outpatient, home health care, long-term care, and acute settings. One of the most rewarding endeavors of her career was being part of a mission trip to Guatemala among a team of therapists, helping local community members.
Thank YOU for your support!
Thank You for all 678 donations made by 442 donors in 2021-2022! Your gifts were made to:
- 92% Growing Our Tomorrow
- 4% Unrestricted
- 3% Resident Care
- 1% Technology
Our 2022-2023 resident care giving focus is new bathtubs. We need 5 at $15,000 each. Thank you for your ongoing support.
Staff Development and Infection Control
Staff development and infection control are two very important positions at Oak Hills. At one time these positions were combined. Today is a new day and we would like to introduce Anna and Megan!
Anna MacHolda, RN, BSN – Infection Prevention and Control
Anna started her nursing career at Oak Hills in 2011 as an RNA and completed her RN in 2015. Then she continued her career at Mayo- Rochester, Mayo- Mankato ICU, New Ulm Medical Center and most recently infection control at Gil-Mor Manor before returning to Oak Hills this March. Why Oak Hills? I love the people here, it’s almost like coming back home. No other nursing home compares to Oak Hills, it is truly a great place!
Megan Oswald, RN, MSN – Staff Development and OnTrack Coordinator
Megan has spent the past 12 years working for New Ulm Medical Center and as a nursing instructor for Rasmussen College since 2020. She has lead several groups of nursing students through their clinicals at Oak Hills. This role will be an extension of her passion for education to not only staff members but also to students interested in beginning their careers. Why Oak Hills? I am a New Ulm native so Oak Hills is an easy pick. I know so many amazing staff members here and have had such positive experiences with family members who have experienced Oak Hills. I know how much of an asset Oak Hills is to this community.
October Employee Anniversaries
| Name | Hire Year |
| Jessica Weisbrich | 2007 |
| Jessica Klinkner | 2008 |
| April Fischer | 2012 |
| Alicia Halvorson | 2013 |
| Kaylyn Lang | 2014 |
| Carson Reed | 2015 |
| Nicola Stewart | 2015 |
| Linda Olson | 2016 |
| Michael Groebner | 2017 |
| Abigail Bianchi | 2018 |
| Elizabeth Bianchi | 2018 |
| Sharon Illikman | 2018 |
| Albina Jaradel | 2018 |
| Nessa Peters | 2019 |
| Naomi Mendez | 2019 |
| Shelby Burtman | 2021 |
| Chloe Miller | 2021 |
| Brittany Thoms | 2021 |
| Tammy Litton | 2021 |
| Melissa Engelhart | 2021 |
Krissy Melzer Celebrates 20 Years of Service
You have been here through culture change, remodeling, restructuring and have always been supportive and eager to try new things, especially if it meant improving things for residents and staff!
Candas Schouvieller Celebrates 16 Years of Service
We all know that long term care is not an easy field to be in, but it is a rewarding one. It is especially rewarding when you have a supportive Administrator that wants the best for the residents and staff. Thank you for all you do for Oak Hills, and for your dedication throughout all these years.
Resident Fun in September!
September was busy with fun! Assisted living week, lots of outdoor time, smores, puppy love therapy dogs, corn eating contest, music, and our own farmers market were just a few! A special Thank You to New Ulm Chiropractic for a special treat for our staff.
