About Our Staff

Administrative Staff | Department Directors | Other Contacts | Award Winners & Noteworthy Staff

A great facility is more than just a beautiful building. The key to providing quality care and service is a dedicated, caring and experienced staff. The Tillers takes great pride in its staff.

Consider the following facts:

  • 165 employees provide care and services to 80 residents
  • Our employee turnover ratio is less than the industry averages in all departments which allow us to provide a higher standard of care on a consistent basis.
  • The Tillers provides superior nursing care because we provide more and better staff than the majority of facilities. The number of hours of nursing care we provide exceed state and national averages, as evidenced by our 5 star staffing rating on the CMS website, Nursing Home Compare.
  • The quality of our staff is evidenced by the scores we receive from satisfied clients on our customer satisfaction survey, Your Opinion Counts. For the year ending December 31, 2008, The Tillers received an average overall score of 1.24 in 35 individual categories of service based on a scale of 1 to 5 (1 being excellent and 5 being poor). Nursing care received an average score of 1.20. Therapy services received an average score of 1.32.
  • The Tillers is family owned and operated by the Saxon family. The Saxons do not own or operate any other long term care facilities. They work full time in the facility. This means that 100% of their time is devoted to managing The Tillers to insure the satisfaction of its clients. Problems are resolved appropriately and promptly.
  • Robert Saxon has served as the owner/administrator for The Tillers since its opening in 1972 and was voted the Illinois Nursing Home Administrator of the Year in 1999. Son, Brett, and daughter, Brooke, are both licensed long term care administrators and serve The Tillers as Assistant Administrator and Associate Administrator respectively.
  • Vicki Johnson, Director of Nursing, has 36 years of nursing experience, 24 years as either director of nursing or as an assistant director of nursing.
  • 5 current employees have served The Tillers for over 25 years! See them featured below!

Our Administrative Staff

Robert Saxon Robert Saxon
Administrator
rsaxon@thetillers.com
Brett Saxon Brett Saxon
Assistant Administrator
bigbird@thetillers.com
Brook Saxon-Spencer Brooke Saxon-Spencer
Associate Administrator (Billing)
bsaxonspencer@thetillers.com
Sara Clymer Sara Clymer
Director of Admissions
sclymer@thetillers.com
Salli Walden Salli Walden
Medical Records Coordinator
swalden@thetillers.com
Karen Schoenly

Karen Schoenly
Director of Human Resources
kschoenly@thetillers.com

Heidi Wisniowicz

Heidi Wisniowicz
Social Services Assistant
hwisniowicz@thetillers.com

Amy Gulbrandsen

 

Amy Gulbrandsen
Community Relations
agulbrandsen@thetillers.com
     

Taryn Finley

Taryn Finley
Director of Social Services
tfinley@thetillers.com

Kristle Boyd

Kristle Boyd
Accounts Payable & Staff Scheduler
kboyd@thetillers.com

Courtnie Vecchione

Courtnie Vecchione
Administrative and
Billing Assistant
cvecchione@thetillers.com

Miriam Becker

Miriam Becker
Admissions Assistant
mbecker@thetillers.com

Claudeen Saxon

Claudeen Saxon
Marketing Representative
csaxon@thetillers.com

 Mary Walt

Faye Rodriguez    Admissions Assistant
frodriguez@thetillers.com

   

Our Department Directors

Vicki Johnson

Vicki Johnson
Director of Nursing
vjohnson@thetillers.com

Kristen Partin

Kristen Etchison       Assistant Director of Nursing
ketchison@thetillers.com

Julie Dean

Julie Dean
Director of Activity Therapy
jdean@thetillers.com

Randy Scott

Randy Scott
Maintenance Supervisor
rscott@thetillers.com

Pam Parnass

Pam Parnass
Director of Dietary Services
pparnass@thetillers.com

Lynn Zakosek

Lynn Zakosek
Housekeeping & Laundry Supervisor
lzakosek@thetillers.com

 Mary Walt

Jo Ransford 
Director of Legacy Rehab
jransford@thetillers.com

       

Other Contacts

ZoeAnn Taylor
Receptionist
ztaylor@thetillers.com

Cheryl Middleton
Charge Nurse
cmiddleton@thetillers.com
Direct Line: 630/636-4309

Heather Harvey
Nursing Records Assistant
(Appointment Scheduler)
hharvey@thetillers.com

LaVerne Cook
Nursing Records Assistant
(Appointment Scheduler)
Evening Receptionist
lcook@thetillers.com

   

 

award winners & noteworthy staff

Robert Saxon
Robert Saxon, Administrator

39 Years of Service
Administrator of the Year 1999
Sharon French


Sharon French, CNA
38 Years of Service

Randy Scott

Randy Scott, Maintenance Supervisor
36 Years of Service 

Crystal Sharp



Crystal Sharp, Housekeeping
34 Years of Service

Terry Truemper

 

Terry Truemper, RN
28 Years of Service

Kelly Chandler


Kelly Chandler, CNA
22 Years

Cheryl Middleton


Cheryl Middleton, Charge Nurse
21 Years of Service

 Cheryl Middleton


Julie Dean,
Director of Activity Therapy
16 Years of Service

Karen Mitchell


Karen Mitchell, CNA
20 Years of Service

Lisa Hoffer


Lisa Hoffer, Dietary 
20 Years of Service
Selene Espinosa


Selene Espinosa, CNA

18 Years of Service

Selene Espinosa 


Michelle White, CNA
18 Years of Service

Zoe Ann Taylor

 

Zoe Ann Taylor, Receptionist
17 Years of Service

Michelle White

 

Brett Saxon, Assistant Administrator
17 Years of Service

Lynn Zakosek



Lynn Zakosek, Housekeeping & Laundry Supervisor

17 Years of Service