A Joy and a Privilege: Brenda’s Return to Royal Park Place and Royal Atrium Inn
For Brenda, serving at Royal Park Place and Royal Atrium Inn has never been just a job. It has been a calling, a ministry, and a place where she has been able to live out her faith through daily acts of care.
Brenda’s history with Providence began more than 25 years ago. With a bachelor’s degree in nursing and experience in a hospital setting, she stepped away from full-time work for a season to raise her children. When she was ready to return to work in a way that fit her family’s needs, she started as a night shift aide at Royal Atrium Inn.
It was supposed to be a small step back into the working world, but it became much more.
“I just loved it,” Brenda said.
From there, she moved into the nursing office and eventually became director, a role she held for many years. In that position, she felt the weight and responsibility of caring for residents and supporting staff. Overnight, she said, she gained more than 70 residents and 40 staff members she felt personally responsible for.
“It was a privilege and an honor to be entrusted with that,” she said.
That sense of responsibility came from the heart. Brenda saw the work as deeply missional, but she also admits it was difficult to leave the emotional weight of the job at work. After years of dedicated service, including the challenges of the pandemic, she felt God nudging her toward a new season. She stepped away from Providence in 2021.
But Providence never really left her heart.
After a few years away, Brenda found herself in a different phase of life. She reached out to Jeff and mentioned that if a front desk position ever opened, she would be interested. A few weeks later, the opportunity came.
Today, Brenda serves at the front desk at Royal Park Place, where she enjoys greeting residents, helping families, and offering kindness in everyday moments.
“It’s been just a joy,” she said. “I love it because I just get to connect with people and help them.”
She also returned to the nursing office at Royal Atrium Inn, helping cover vacation time and eventually stepping in one day a week to support the team. For Brenda, being back in that familiar place has been meaningful.
“I used to walk through the doors at Royal Atrium, and almost every day I’d say, ‘I can’t believe I get paid to do something I love so much,’” she said.
One of the reasons Providence has remained so special to Brenda is the mission: answering the call to enhance the lives of those we serve in the name of Jesus Christ. During her time interviewing potential team members, she would often share the mission statement and ask applicants what it would mean to them if they worked there.
For Brenda, the mission means showing up with compassion, humility, prayer, and a willingness to serve.
She remembers moments from her early years as a resident assistant when residents were struggling at night, and she was able to sit with them, comfort them, and pray with them. Later, as a director, she saw that same opportunity extend to residents, families, and staff.
“When you can’t offer them anything else, that’s the biggest thing you can offer someone, is prayer,” she said.
Her approach to care has always been simple and deeply human: How may I help? What can I do to make this better? How can I bring comfort?
That heart for service continues to shape the way she works today.
Brenda also speaks with deep appreciation for the people she serves alongside. Having spent decades connected to Royal Park Place and Royal Atrium Inn, she has seen many changes over the years, but she continues to feel a strong sense of unity among the team.
“I can definitely feel that we’re all on a mission together,” she said.
Outside of work, Brenda is grateful for a full family life. She and her husband have five children, including one son who came to live with their family as a teenager and another daughter they adopted from birth. She is also a proud grandmother of ten, with more grandchildren on the way.
That season of life is one reason her work has shifted in recent years. She wanted to continue serving while also being present for her family and not missing the gift of being a grandparent.
Now, in this new chapter, Brenda is grateful to be back in a place that has meant so much to her for so long.
“I do not take it for granted that I’ve been able to come back and serve in some small capacity there,” she said.
For Brenda, Providence is more than a workplace. It is a place where faith and service come together, where residents are loved, where coworkers support one another, and where even the simplest acts of kindness can become part of a larger mission.
