One Caregiver’s Journey Back to Royal Atrium Inn
“The support wasn’t there. The staff didn’t want to work. I realized quickly it wasn’t a good fit.”
Kathy reached back out to a Royal Atrium Inn staff member she’d stayed in touch with. “I asked her, ‘Will you take me back?’ And she did. They welcomed me with open arms.”
Walking back through the doors of Royal Atrium Inn, she expected at least a slight hesitation. But instead, she got hugs.
“No one made me feel embarrassed for leaving. The residents were happy to see me. The team welcomed me. It just felt like home.”
In her decades in senior care, she’s seen all types of facilities. But something about Royal Atrium Inn stands out.
“Some assisted living facilities feel like mini nursing homes. You’re rushed, overloaded, and don’t have time to connect,” she said. “Here, I can sit with residents. I can listen. I can build relationships with them and their families. And that makes all the difference.”
It’s not just about the pace. It’s the culture Kathy explained, “Our leadership listens. If I bring up a concern, it doesn’t disappear into a void. They try to help. You’re not just a number here. People know your name.”
She describes the atmosphere as that of a small town, where many residents grew up together, attended church together, or have family connections that date back decades.
“It’s not your typical assisted living. It feels like a community. A real one.”
Not everyone gets to do the work they feel called to do, she acknowledges. “I’m lucky. This is what I believe I was meant to do.”
There are hard days, of course. In this work, grief is part of the rhythm. But over time, she’s learned to embrace the privilege of walking people through their final chapters. “You’re being let in behind the curtain at one of the most intimate, sacred times in someone’s life,” Kathy said. “Families trust us with that. That’s huge.”
She has formed bonds with many residents, but one story stood out about her return. When Kathy left, she gave that resident a handwritten note and a Bible verse card. The woman kept it in her Bible, praying for her each night.
“She prayed that I’d succeed where I was, but if possible, I could come back,” Kathy said. “When I returned, she was so happy. And after she passed, her daughter gave that card back to me.”
Part of what makes her so good at this work is that she’s seen it from both sides.
Kathy and her husband, Dan, a 32-year marriage, cared for her parents in their home for five years. Her mother passed away there, under hospice care. Her father, living with memory loss, later moved into a memory care community. Kathy understands the concerns of leaving a loved one in someone else’s hands.
She’s also known profound personal loss, her brother passed away from brain cancer 18 years ago. “That grief stays with you. But it also gives you perspective. It reminds me to treat every resident the way I’d want my own family to be treated.”
Today, she’s back where she feels called, surrounded by people who care deeply for each other and for the residents they serve. “I’ve been in this field a long time. And I can tell you, this place is different,” Kathy said.
Royal Atrium Inn didn’t just welcome her back. It reminded her of why she chose this work in the first place.
