Meet Megan Tengerstrom, Vice President of Operations

We want to support our team members who are aligned with the Providence mission as they serve in various capacities within our organization. One of the great blessings of working at Providence is watching staff find their passions and excel in their career fields. You’ll find that many of our staff began in maintenance, or as a CNA, or as a dining room server, and steadily moved on to tackle new challenges within our organization. One example of that is Megan Tengerstrom, our Vice President of Operations.

Megan began her Providence journey in 2005 as a Certified Nursing Assistant at a Providence community where her friend’s mother worked. “She knew I was a CNA,” Megan says, “And she said, ‘You need to work with us. They take good care of their employees and residents.’ And she was right.” Megan then moved on to be a scheduler, then a Director of CNAs, all the while advancing her education in the classroom, but learning continually in real-life situations on the job. She moved on to become Assistant Administrator, then Administrator at several of our communities. She has been Vice President of Operations since 2017 but has recently taken on oversight of Retirement & Assisted Living communities within PLS, in addition to the Skilled Nursing communities she’d already been working with.

While she has excelled in every position she’s filled, Megan’s light shone perhaps most brightly during our fight against COVID-19, particularly as she led the work to form our COVID-19 Recovery Unit, all while finishing her second master’s degree. Throughout the pandemic, she dealt with those needing the highest levels of care, giving up vacation time to help communities get through surveys, regulation changes, safety precautions, and whatever else was needed.

“I’ll be forever grateful for all the staff members who worked through the many challenges of the pandemic, and who went above and beyond to care for residents and each other in the most difficult times.”

Of course, we are thoroughly impressed with Megan’s technical expertise, but what sets her apart is that she is highly intelligent and completely committed in amazing ways. When there’s a challenge for her, a community, or one of the people we serve, she pours everything she has into finding creative solutions and making sure things are done right. Her heart is with our residents, and she ensures they are well-served. But Megan is quick to share the credit.

“I have a deep appreciation for the staff who are in all roles in our communities, and the work that they do to serve others.”

Megan is a great example of the Providence mission in action, and we are grateful for her.