Santa Marta Executive Director Elevated to Regional Position Within Company

PRLog (Press Release) - Jan. 9, 2012 - OLATHE, Kan.:  Due to the progressive and highly successful hospitality and service program he has implemented at Santa Marta, a senior living community sponsored by the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, Chester “Chet” Surmaczewicz has been promoted to Regional Executive Director of Hospitality for Greystone Communities, Inc. Greystone is the leading full-service development and management consultant to the non-profit senior living industry. In addition to continuing his responsibilities at Santa Marta, Surmaczewicz will oversee hospitality programs for a number of other communities managed by Greystone in 25 states.

“The experience Chet’s created for residents at Santa Marta is quite remarkable,” said Rick Cumberland, Senior Vice President, Operations for Greystone Communities. “The program he’s designed is really the model we try to establish at each of our communities, so we’re excited about bringing Chet’s philosophies and practices to a broader Greystone audience.”

At an annual conference in August, Holleran Highest Honors selected Santa Marta as the “best of the best” among 272 senior living communities in 34 states. Awards are presented to communities that score in the 90th percentile of the national benchmark, which contains results from approximately 45,000 surveys. Santa Marta was recognized for excellence in First Impressions, Employee Satisfaction and Overall Hospitality Program. Also since joining Santa Marta in 2009, resident referrals have increased 120 percent.

Previously, Surmaczewicz held a broad range of executive management positions within the field of hospitality, from Executive Chef and most recently Complex General Manager for such brands as Ritz Carlton, Intercontinental and Marriott Hotels and Resorts. Surmaczewicz is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y.

Santa Marta, located at 13800 W. 116th Street in Olathe, Kan., across from St. Thomas Aquinas High School, is sponsored by the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas. The community’s 45-acre campus provides adults age 62-plus Tuscan-inspired private homes located in an exclusive setting on the grounds of Santa Marta. Residents enjoy a full range of services and amenities, including a full healthcare continuum, maintenance-free living, two full-service dining venues, heated underground parking, a chapel, library, arts and crafts studio, and a fitness and aquatic center.

Santa Marta’s healthcare continuum provides three levels of care, including 32 assisted living apartments, 16 memory support suites and 32 skilled nursing suites. These services are available both as part of the full continuum of care for Santa Marta’s residents, and also for the community-at-large on a private-pay basis. More information about Santa Marta is available by calling (913) 906-0990 or by visiting www.SantaMartaRetirement.com.

The Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas is composed of 21 counties in northeastern Kansas, covering more than 12,500 square miles. The Archdiocese serves more than 180,000 Catholics through its agencies, departments, parishes, schools and institutions.