Congratulations to Maggie Vogel, the recipient of the March Staff on the Rise recognition. Maggie has been the senior counselor at Edgewood House since she started with RISE in March 2020.
Ian Vonie, Edgewood House Program Director, believes Maggie is very well suited for her role as senior counselor and says, “Maggie is a dedicated staff member whose desire to provide the best possible environment for the Edgewood House residents is on display each shift. She is a consistent communicator and can be counted on to directly communicate the myriad of concerns and issues that arise each week to myself and the rest of the Edgewood House team. Last year, when I first became the program director, she was an integral part of getting me up to speed about residents’ habits and behaviors, as well as all the quirks associated with the facilities of this house.”
“I love working with the residents, it is great to see them make strides towards reaching their goals.”
Maggie is the primary counselor for two residents, but she is always open to provide guidance or even just a listening ear to any of the residents who express a need to talk. “I love working with the residents,” Maggie exclaims, “It is great seeing them making strides towards reaching their goals and especially overcoming obstacles that they didn’t think they could overcome.” One of her major responsibilities as a primary counselor is working with the residents on developing and attaining their service plan goals. Ian considers this one of her greatest strengths. “She is a creative problem solver,” he says. “She often crafts very unique and on point service plans for her residents to help them reach their goals.”
“Maggie is savvy when it comes to finding deals at the food bank.”
Overseeing all aspects of food ordering and meal prep is a huge part of Maggie’s job. She creates monthly menu’s, researches recipes, and does the shopping. “For the longest time I used to do all the prep work for dinner so that staff would only need to heat it up ahead of time,” she explains. “But now that we are more fully staffed, I no longer do all the prep work. Now I just create the menus, provide the recipes, and ensure that the ingredients are on hand so other staff members can work with the residents, to teach them how prep and prepare meals.”
Maggie does much of the food shopping at the Regional Food Bank as well as picking up donations from various community partners including a weekly donation from Starbucks. “She is very savvy when it comes to finding deals at the food bank,” Ian says in praise of Maggie’s skillful shopping. “One time she got us over 2,000 pounds of foodstuffs from the food bank for less than 200 dollars. I challenge anyone else to pull that off.”
Maggie’s other duties include helping residents fill their medication dispenser for the week and ordering the medication refills from the pharmacy. She plans the weekly recreational activities and does creative things like decorating the house for holidays. “I like that not every day is the same,” Maggie shares. “Every day is a little different, based on what is needed.” She also enjoys working with the other staff members and feels they finally have established a good team.
In the past year, Edgewood house has gone through several cycles of low staffing where all staff members had to increase their caseloads and work extra hours to pull through. Ian says, “Despite the extra work due to low staffing, Maggie has remained a consistent and dedicated staff member.” Maggie shares that she has always had an admirable work ethic. “I enjoys having tasks and I find fulfillment in completing them. I like to keep moving and keep busy throughout the day,” she shares. Her dedication to the residents comes from her desire and enjoyment of helping others. Prior to working at RISE, Maggie worked in a nursing home, but wanted to do more to help people manage their lives. “My mother and sister both work in health care as nurses and my father works in mental health, so I felt this was a good field to explore and fulfill my desire to help others,” she explains.
Maggie loves working at RISE and hopes to grow her career within the agency.
Maggie started working when she was 15 years old at The Great Escape. In addition to working at the nursing home, she has had retail experience and was a food manager at a bar – which, she says, is why she does so well with meal planning and shopping for Edgewood. Maggie has taken some college courses, and now that she has found a field she really enjoys, she would like to return to school to study human services or social work. She loves working at RISE and hopes to grow her career within the agency.
In her down time, Maggie feels it is important to take time for herself. She enjoys acrylic painting on canvas, and spending time with her two cats and Pomeranian, Luna – a registered service animal who has sat with and provided comport to Edgewood House residents in the past. She also enjoys taking care of her garden. Maggie and her fiancé have been together for 10 years. Together they enjoy hiking scenic byways in Adirondacks to see the pretty views. They’ve been engaged for a year and they are planning wedding for a time when – post COVID – it is safe for out-of-state family to attend.
RISE administration appreciates all that Maggie does for the agency and for the individuals we serve. She is caring, compassionate, and dedicated – all the qualities of a Staff on the Rise. Please join us in congratulating her as the recipient of the March Staff on the Rise recognition.