It was a day of celebration Thursday for the Perry Lutheran Homes at Eden Acres Campus in Perry.  

A number of awards were distributed including the Distinguished LeadingAge Iowa Excellence in Leadership Award.  Tonya Swank is the Director of Guest Experience at Perry Lutheran Homes and was presented with the award after her 23 years of exemplary service.

“I was completely humbled by the nomination and finding out that I was the recipient. There’s so many people that work through the Perry Lutheran Homes organization that deserve this award just as much as I do.”

Perry Lutheran Homes Director Melissa Gannon also presented awards to Val Chapman for her incredible service through covid and to the Project Deliver the Hope committee members Diana Troster, Nancy Harker, Ann Carrick and Jennifer Priest for their dedication to the annual Project Hope event.

For all the recipients, including Swank, the relationships is what makes the job so special.

“I enjoy most spending a lot of time with the residents on the moments that we crave, the bigger ones are fun, but the everyday moments are the ones that really matter.”

A public ceremony was held at Eden Acres Campus in Perry.