Penni Martin, Administrator
Penni has been a long-standing administrator in the state of Connecticut and with National Health Care Associates, which is the owner of the Hebrew Center, for more than 10 years now. Previously, Penni was the Regional Director of Operations for all Connecticut-based centers. Prior to that position she has been an administrator at three other National Health Care centers. She came to the Hebrew Center last June, as the new administrator. She enjoys working at the Hebrew Center because it has a great reputation in both the Greater West Hartford community and with regional healthcare providers. She is proud of her entire team and she is happy that she found the right people to make the Hebrew Center a 5-Star CMS center. She’s extremely proud of that accomplishment and the quality of care here. It’s great for her to be able to watch the transition of care. The center is improving and doing great under National Health Care. Hebrew Center is now Kosher HKC certified and they’re the only one in Connecticut with such distinction. Penni feels this was such an accomplishment for the center and she can’t say enough how proud she is of her team for the great strides they have made and what the futures hold for Hebrew Center!
Tracee Smith, Director of Medicare
If you see a fluffy white dog attached to a woman’s hip at Hebrew Center, then it’s Tracee and her dog Cody! She’s the director of Medicare here and her job entails being in charge of all aspects of Medicare and making sure the residents get the services they need. Tracee has been a National Health Care employee for about 12 years now. She started working at the Hebrew Center in October of 2017. Previously she was a regional director, but she’s excited for her future at the Hebrew Center. Being able to help somebody in need of care is the best part of her job. She said, getting to see a customer be able to go home and back to their normal living is the most rewarding. Tracee thinks that her team here is the great because of how friendly they are. What she loves is being able to bring Cody around to the residents to cheer them up and he loves it too!
Ken Pina, Director of Food Services
Ken was referred to Hebrew Center from a former supervisor who currently works for the National Health Care, our management company. He’s been in the food industry for nearly 20 years, working for several other companies, but believes the Hebrew Center has the best staff, especially in the kitchen! The most rewarding part of his job is building relationships with the residents. He loves putting smiles on their faces and making them happy. What he’s most proud of is being able to raise the quality of food that is being served here and helping the center become HKC certified, Certified Kosher by the Hartford Kashrut Commission.
Duwayne McPherson, Supervisor Environmental Services
Duwayne’s job here at the Hebrew Center is to manage the housekeeping and laundry services. He manages a team of nearly 30 people who provide these services for the residents. He has been at the Hebrew Center for 10 years now, beginning as a line staff employee and working his way up to becoming a supervisor. His goal is to make sure that the residents and their family members are happy. In order to do that, Duwayne ensures that his employees are happy with their roles in his department; he feels this leads to making our residents happy. He’s proud to say that the changes National has implemented since its acquisition of Hebrew Center have made the building better and he’s looking forward to the future!