Kansas City, MO — Bickford of Rockford’s Family Advocate Dawn Withers was recently honored as one of three nominees for 2023 Family Advocate of the year at the company’s annual Pearl Ceremony in Kansas City. As part of the annual awards ceremony, Bickford headquarters sent a video crew to capture Rockford’s residents and resident family members talking about the impact she’s had on them, and why she deserves the recognition. Here’s what they had to say. Congratulations, Dawn! We’re proud to have you on our team.

Play

Rick Swansbro: No matter what your problem when you bring it to her you know right away she’ll she’ll go to work and either get an answer or help us work our way through it. You know, I think a lot of the people who live here are here because of Dawn, because of their first engagement with Dawn, with her positive nature, her willingness to go out of her way to help people.

Julie Young: One thing that she had said was that she would never give up on my mom. And that made such a difference. What makes Dawn unique is this abundance of energy, love, and care that she has for everyone here.

Roger Mahler: Dawn represents Bickford and their whole culture, I believe She’s very committed to the care of all the residents. Dawn helps create a warm environment by her conversation skills her warmth and her energy. Dawn’s just a fantastic person.

David Grenberg: Well, Don is kind of like the sunshine in our lives no matter how difficult our day has been with mom or our week. Dawn always brings a certain amount of compassion and levity to the situation. The Bickford, ended up being our choice in large part due to Dawn. I think my favorite quality about Dawn is her genuine sense of empathy. It’s not manufactured, it’s not forced. Dawn feels the concern, the pain, the confusion, and the hurt of the families. She is the one thing that you can rely on every time you walk into the Bickford. There’s the smile, there’s the greeting, there’s that distinct laugh, and a sense that, don’t worry, we got this. You know, it’s gonna be okay.

Virginia Borth: Just seeing Dawn brightens your day right away because she’s always bubbly. Sometimes her outrageous outfits that she wears that attracts people’s attention and makes them smile and feel better. When I came back from the hospital after having COVID, and I jokingly said, Yeah, I need a parade. And she organized, you know, four people to stand in the hallway when I was coming back.

Dorothy Schnulle: I’m a hundred years old, and I never met anybody that I liked more than Dawn because of her caring attitude about everybody. Thank you, Dawn. We love you.