The Journey Here: Amy (Sept. 2025)

At Concordia Lutheran Ministries, we are blessed with a dedicated team of compassionate employees who help us carry out our mission of caring every day.

Through our series of employee testimonials, “The Journey Here,” we’ll introduce you to team members, profiling their Concordia journey. The piece will be supplemented with a Q&A featured in our Faith in Caring magazine, offering further perspective on how our employees work as the hands and hearts of our mission.

We’re excited for you to meet Concordia at Sumner Director of Activities Amy Malone:

Channeling

Fidgeting hands. Racing thoughts. Amy likes to stay busy.

Amy has Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) which makes concentration difficult due to racing, evanescent thoughts. She uses her uniqueness to her advantage, speeding up when others might slow down.

“My mind works very quickly, and I cope in different ways.” Amy said.

Amy channels her energy into every themed party, exercise class or a day out on the town. Through sheer excitement, she re-energizes the residents with a variety of fun and engaging activities they look forward to each and every week.

Shifting

A 2007 Mercyhurst College graduate, Amy worked in the dining room of an assisted living facility throughout high school and college. During the Great Recession, Amy’s job search toiled.

Unable to find work in communications or public relations, she moved forward with what she had on hand. She had already grown fond of the environment.

“I always enjoyed being around the elderly,” she said. “I felt at ease with them.”

As Amy’s fondness for the residents grew, she explored career possibilities in senior care. This led her to the activities department.

“I didn’t find it,” Amy said. “This job found me.”

Across a handful of years, she bounced between facilities. Before Concordia, Amy felt deeply connected to one senior care community where she worked for 5 ½ years. Then her husband found a new job, and the family moved. Amy had a tough time saying goodbye.

“I thought to myself, I’ll never stay at any place as long as I stayed there,” Amy said. “Then I came to Concordia and proved myself wrong.”

Adapting

Amy found familiarity in her new environment through her interactions with residents. While the faces may have changed, she found new friends who shared stories, laughed at her jokes and genuinely enjoyed her antics.

The residents needed her, and for the first time in her career, Amy felt unrestrained to meet their needs and expectations.

 “I’ve worked in other companies where they give me a strict budget,” Amy said. “They don’t do that here. Concordia gives me whatever I need for the residents. If it’s for the residents, they’ll make it happen.”

Amy also folded in her own unique experience into the activities at Sumner. She holds certificates as a dementia practitioner and Balloflex dance instructor. Amy also enjoys running and exercise.

 “I like to stay active and fit, and I like to bring that to Concordia,” she said.

She also credits her staff, who brings their own unique spin to the role too.

“I’d be nothing without my staff,” Amy said. “When you have a supportive team, you can do anything.”

Learning

When Amy started with Concordia, she only managed activities for assisted living. Today, she manages them across the entire Sumner campus.

As Amy continued to grow into that role, she discovered greater importance in her work. She believes people looking into retirement living truly value a fun and diverse activities program.

“I still don’t think people understand how much activities matter, but activities are huge.” she said. “When I see families touring, I don’t walk away. I walk up to them and introduce myself.”

While Amy has learned a lot about her role and how to expand her career’s horizons, she’s also learned a lot from the residents, particularly in the art of slowing down.

“They knew how to do things right. Not the quick way. The right way. I want to learn from them,” Amy said.

Exceling

Amy has continued growing, and she loves seeking new opportunities to expand her skill set. It’s easy to grow in a comfortable place like Concordia.

 “I thought to myself, ‘I can do more with this. I can build on this,’” she said.

Her growth at Concordia has been supported by her dedicated staff as well as her husband and two children at home.

Her family’s calendar is often full, but she cherishes every free moment she can unwind with those she loves the most.

Rooting herself in her family and her career allows Amy the ability to seek new horizons. She’s excited to see how far she can go.

“Getting involved in things I’ve never done before is growth to me,” she said. “Growing within my role and in my community is important too.”

She has found perspective in the small, fleeting moments, and her cup fills up with each smile and laugh from the residents. Every day, Amy chases her peace within the chaos.

View all open careers at ConcordiaCareers.org and connect with us on social to learn more about our employee culture! And, to learn more about Amy’s perspective on her Concordia career, check out the September issue of Concordia’s Faith in Caring magazine.

Subscribe today by emailing giving@concordialm.org.

Check Out Other Journeys from This Past Year

The Journey Here: Kathy (Dec. 2024)
The Journey Here: Korey (March 2025)
The Journey Here: Chirsty (June 2025)
 

---

Founded in 1881, Concordia Lutheran Ministries is a faith-based, CARF-accredited Aging Services Network and recipient of the inaugural Pennsylvania Department of Aging Excellence in Quality Care Award. As one of the largest nonprofit senior care providers in the country, the organization serves 50,000 people annually through in-home care and inpatient locations.