July Employee of the Month – Donna Hammer
Congratulations to Donna Hammer for being named Employee of the Month for July 2025. Donna is an Activities Director at Cal Turner Rehab & Specialty Care in Scottsville. Donna was nominated for her unwavering commitment, generosity, and joyful spirit.
“Donna Hammer serves as the Activities Director for Cal Turner Rehab and Specialty Care. When considering the Employee of the Month award, there is no one more deserving than Donna; who has devoted her life and career to the service and care of others. Although her title is “Activities Director”, Donna wears a multitude of hats in our facility. Donna brings positivity, energy and enthusiasm to our facility that is unmatched. Donna has served our residents since 2015. In total, Donna has served others through working in healthcare for over 45 years. From the point of admission, Donna focuses on person-centered care. Donna sits with each resident and their family for an extended period of time to learn about their life story. She relates to residents and their families to create a personal, trusting relationship from their admission and throughout their stay. She is the epitome of living out person-centered care. She tailors her conversation with each resident to reflect upon their memories, likes and dislikes. In our facility, we have a large population of residents with moderate to severe cognitive impairments. Donna has had such an impact on these residents that some will continually ask for “Donna Hammer”. We once had a new admission that came to us without any street clothes. Donna went out and purchased him new clothing with her own money so that he would feel more comfortable. She strives to make each new resident’s transition to long term care as easy as possible. Once, we had a resident that had refused to eat, due to depression. Donna recalled that this resident enjoyed puffcorn, and she brought him some each day until eventually he started to eat again. She encouraged him and brought light to his day. . As soon as she enters our facility, she is greeting and complimenting everyone that enters her path. She never misses a celebratory week such as Activities Week, CNA Week, Nurses’ Week, etc. Donna is sure to arrive dressed for the occasion and gives thoughtful gifts to those people to show them her appreciation. Donna is known for dressing for the occasion at resident events, as well. Not only will she come in costume, but she will provide costumes for others. Donna will do anything it takes to put a smile on a resident’s face. Over the years, Donna has orchestrated elaborate parties for our residents, paying attention to detail and anything that will bring joy to others. At Christmas, Donna organizes and ensures each resident has a large amount of gifts from Santa, a visit from Santa (and his elves), a festive menu, and holiday entertainment for all. We have an “Angel Tree” project at Christmas, where members of the community will select a resident off of our Christmas tree and buy them presents for Christmas that they will receive at our Christmas party. Donna has, on several occasions, went out and purchased gifts for newly admitted residents or those who were selected but their gifts weren’t delivered. She inspects each gift to ensure the items received by all residents are equal, and has purchased extra gifts to make sure each resident feels loved and celebrated. Donna deserves Employee of the Month!“- Andrea Wooley
