Board & Staff

Meet Our Pioneers

Meet the team of staff and volunteers behind Pioneer Network. You will find a diverse group of people all working together to help elders live in open, diverse, and caring communities.

Staff

Penny Cook, MSW, President/CEO: Penny’s commitment to changing the culture of aging and long-term care began early in her professional career as a social worker in Rochester, New York and continued as she moved to Colorado. She strongly believes that the care we provide to elders is directly related to the way we, as a society, view aging.  She is passionate about spreading the message that we are in the midst of a revolution about how we age and where we do it. Penny comments that, “no matter whether people live, in nursing homes, assisted living communities or in their family home, we all deserve and should expect respectful and dignified care and support that is centered, directed and tailored to us as individuals.”

Penny previously served as the Manager of the Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program in the Denver metropolitan region and as the Executive Director of the Colorado Culture Change Coalition. There she expanded the Coalition’s reach to look beyond nursing homes and brought the message of culture change to assisted living communities and home care organizations. Most recently she was the Director of Long Term Services and Supports for Colorado Access where she managed a state Medicaid contract to connect individuals to long-term services and supports. Penny received her Master of Social Work degree from the State University of New York at Albany and her Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from Binghamton University. 
penny.cook@pioneernetwork.net

 

 

Cathy Lieblich, Director of Network Relations: Cathy’s responsibilities include liaison between Pioneer Network and state culture change coalitions; managing special projects; and helping to plan and conduct educational programs. She has over 40 years of experience in the field of aging and long-term care including working on the national level for the National Council on the Aging, on the state level for a long-term care provider association, and on the local level for an area agency on aging, a university center on aging and a private foundation. Cathy was the founding director of the Florida culture change coalition, one of the first in the country, and currently serves on the coalition’s Steering Committee. She earned a Master of Arts degree in Social Service Administration from The University of Chicago and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Anthropology from The Johns Hopkins University.
cathy.lieblich@pioneernetwork.net

 

Joan Devine, Director of Education: Joan leads the development and implementation of educational programming for the organization. She is also a certified Eden Educator and Mentor and the owner and operator of JPDevine Consulting whose mission is to “support care partners on their journey 2 home.” A registered nurse and former activity professional, Joan has over 30 years of experience in healthcare having served in leadership positions in long-term and acute care settings since 1990. As an advocate for the LTC culture change movement, Joan serves as a frequent speaker at state and national forums and currently serves as a Director on the board of MC5 (Missouri Coalition Celebrating Care Continuum Change). Joan is the author of the book, “Word of the Week: Creating a Culture Change Dictionary, She earned a B.A. in Music Education/Music Therapy, a B.S. in Nursing and a Masters in Management.
joan.devine@pioneernetwork.net

 

Founder and Convener in Memoriam

Carter Catlett Williams

Board

Barbara Sepich
Board Chair
President/CEO, WRC Senior Services
Brookville, PA

 

Todd Andrews
Board Vice Chair
Vice President of Master Planning, Asbury Support and Collaboration Center
Frederick, MD

 

Jessica Luh Kim
Secretary
Vice President of Membership, Policy and Professional Development
Ontario Retirement Communities Association (ORCA)
Ontario, Canada

 

Tom Gilmartin
Treasurer
Chief Financial Officer,National Health Care Associates, Inc.
Freehold, NJ

 

Juliet Holt Klinger
Senior Director Dementia Care, Brookdale Senior Living
Chicago, IL

 

Tim Johnston
Senior Director of National Projects, SAGE

 

Cheryl Kruschke
Associate Professor, Regis University, Retired
Denver, CO

 

Marguerite McLaughlin
Consultant, New England QIN QIO
Healthcentric Advisors
Cumberland, RI

 

Kenyon Redfoot
Attorney, Colorado Bar
Denver, CO

 

Wayne Langley
Senior Vice President, Community Initiatives and Mather Institute
Evanston, IL

 

Pioneer Network would like to thank Memory Well for telling the life stories of our Board members.