Presidential Ponderings

After more than 40 years of working in long term care, I have adjusted to the seasonality of
how our organization functions. For instance, we are now in the midst of our key fundraising
months. In less than a 90-day time frame, we offer the Chicken BBQ in late July, the Golf
Tournament in mid-September, and the Good Samaritan Dinner in mid-October. (Kudos and
many thanks to Lisa Thomas and Barb Showers for accomplishing all of that in such a short
period of time!)

In the latter part of the year, we do an incredible amount of eating as the calendar is filled.
with Holiday Dinners, cookie exchanges/sales, Staff Christmas luncheons, and intradepartment Christmas
parties. By the time Spring rolls around, we are ‘all business’ in
preparing for our annual inspections in both Nursing and Personal Care.

At this time of year, however, August through October is our “budget season.” In August the
management staff will meet with Henry and begin to formulate assumptions about 2024.
Since labor costs account for nearly 60% of our total budget, we first examine our pay scales
and whether or not they are competitive with what is happening in the local economy. We
also test assumptions about what new services we expect to open in 2024 (e.g., Fox Run)
and what additional resources we will need to provide. We re-examine the services and
products we purchase from outside vendors and contractors, and whether or not they are
cost-effective and of high quality. We also budget for major equipment (e.g., older vehicles)
replacements.

By September, Henry and his staff will assemble a “first draft” of the budget, and take that
to the Board’s Finance Committee for review and commentary. Based on the feedback we
get from the Finance Committee, we continue to make changes and hone our projections to
be as accurate as possible. In most years, our projected expenses come within 1% of what
the actual expenses turn out to be! By late October we return to the Finance Committee for
their final review and approval. When November comes, the 2024 Budget is done and we
can turn our full attention back to the upcoming Holiday eating events!

Many thanks to Henry Brubaker, Lisa Morganthall and all of the staff who work so hard in
assembling our Annual Budgets. It is a massive undertaking, but the process continues to
serve us well as our organizational finances remain extremely strong and steady. I hope the
residents appreciate the transparency that we strive for in operating this Community.

Thanks for listening,
Jeff Shireman, President