Hospitality from the Ground Up
With a background in hospitality and more than 15 years of experience in senior living, Stephen Kennery is well-suited for his role as executive director of The Carrington at Lincolnwood. The Life Plan rental senior living community is under construction and slated to open in January. Kennery, who moved to the Chicago area-before the first brick was laid, said that he's eagerly anticipating the completion of the retirement community which will be different than any other.
"Hospitality is especially important now. Residents of senior living communities are becoming increasingly sophisticated and discriminating. When they order a hot beverage, they expect a latte, not a cup of instant coffee. This generation expects more, and we're positioned to offer that. We have a strong hospitality mindset," said Kennery. "The management of retirement communities know that in order to be successful, they need to focus on hospitality."
Kennery was born in New York City and spent much of his adult life in northern California. His formal education was in political science and geology, but his professional experience was largely in restaurants. "After filling in at a friend's tavern, I found I had a knack and fondness for food and beverage service. I was recruited by a corporation that owned 22 restaurants. They subsidized my formal restaurant training, and the rest is history," he said.
Fifteen years ago, Kennery was recruited by a company that owned five senior living communities. "The president said that his food and beverage component was broken and needed to be fixed. Over the next 18 months I fixed it, hiring chefs, connecting with vendors, and basically getting the right people in place. I took them from opening cans and defrosting food, to scratch cooking," he said. Kennery remained in charge of food and beverage for the corporation, while simultaneously helping to open seven more communities. "I wore a lot of hats. I headed up sales and marketing, and website development, I oversaw a mentoring program and wrote and chaired the executive development program. When someone in the company didn't want a job, they said, 'give it to Stephen'. I was successful so they kept throwing me things. My experience there was amazing. It was a great run." Kennery left when the ownership changed in 2016, and he moved to take the reins at The Carrington earlier this year.
The fact that The Carrington is a rental community, with no buy-in fee, will keep Kennery and his team on their toes. "Residents will remain here because of the great lifestyle and service, not because of a contract making it difficult to leave. My success will be measured by occupancy and stability, and I plan on being very successful," he said. "Our approach is to pretend we're a cruise ship that doesn't go anywhere. That's what people want. And it's what they deserve."
While hospitality-oriented, in his free Kennery is more than a little bit adventurous as well. "I've been a sailor for more than 30 years. My father gave me a little sailboat when I was 12. I tipped it over a thousand times, but I'm always happy near the water," he said. "When I met my future brother-in-law, he owned a boat and asked if I'd race with him. We raced on San Francisco Bay, which is one of the windiest in the world. There's a huge racing scene there," he said. In 2006, Kennery, his brother-in-law and two nephews, entered his first transpacific race, the Pacific Cup, from San Francisco to Hawaii. This was a 12-day, 19-hour and 11-minute trip. They have repeated the race almost every other year since. "It's quite an adventure, and a very humbling experience," he said. "When I tell people about it, I usually get one of two reactions. Either, 'are you out of your mind?' or 'how cool is that!'" Now happy in his new Chicago-area home, Kennery has joined the Chicago Corinthian Yacht Club and races with groups during the summer.
"Hospitality and adventure are good characteristics to mix," said Kennery. "It keeps things interesting and running well."
The Carrington at Lincolnwood is a senior living community located on a scenic campus in Lincolnwood, Illinois. The Carrington offers independent living, assisted living, and memory care, all with a simple monthly payment with no entrance fees or buy-ins. The Carrington is managed by Life Care Services®. The Carrington at Lincolnwood is located at 3501 Northeast Parkway in Lincolnwood. For additional information visit www.CarringtonLincolnwood.com, email info@CarringtonLincolnwood.com, or call 847-973-6262.