For Joanna Sommers, Heritage has never been just a workplace. It is a community woven directly into her family roots across three generations.
Generations of Service and Belonging
Growing up around campus, Joanna watched her Grandma Wills (Peggy), her Aunt Becky, and her mother serve side-by-side. Her mother was a kind, creative, and hardworking presence—hanging wallpaper across upper campus, tending the gardens in the rain with her visor on, designing window valances for offices, and hemming clothing for residents.
“I could tell making the world a better place or improving it brought her great joy and that in turn made me feel like I could do the same,” Joanna recalls.
Around age three, Joanna and her sister were tutored on campus for dyslexia by Esther Trice. That early foundation cemented the community as a second home filled with belonging, love, and a desire to help others.
Supported Through Personal Tragedy
Joanna began her career at Heritage in 2023 as an Activities Coordinator, pouring herself into resident connection. Shortly after, heartbreak struck in waves: the loss of her 47-year-old cousin to lupus complications, the devastating passing of both of her parents in a house fire, and a brain tumor diagnosis for her husband, Mitchell.
During an unimaginable season of grief, the Heritage team and residents rallied around her. Supported by the Caring Funds so she could take time away to focus on healing her family, she also found emotional shelter in the residents she had served.
“The residents who I love so poured their selves into me and my life,” Joanna shares. “They prayed daily, sent cards and were there to hold me, lift me up and listen whenever they could see it was needed. In that I found a great lesson, I had given so much love that in return they gave me grace and healing when I needed it most.”
Taking the Wheel at 40
When the opportunity arose to transition into transportation, Joanna was hesitant to leave activities, but recognized an avenue to broaden her impact. Driven by perseverance and will, she used Heritage’s in-house training at age 40 to earn her Commercial Driver’s License (CDL).
Today, as a Medical Transportation Driver, Joanna provides non-emergency medical transit across Chautauqua, Erie, and Warren counties. Recognizing that medical appointments can bring anxiety or difficult prognoses, she approaches every trip with intentional empathy.
She tailors every ride to the passenger’s physical and emotional needs—whether adjusting the cab’s temperature, driving gently for someone recovering from an injury, or sharing personal reflections so passengers know they are not alone.
An Enduring Family Legacy
Connecting her childhood memories on campus to her current role behind the wheel, Joanna remains anchored in the values passed down through her family.
In a world full of broken people, the legacy I learned was to not become bitter, resentful, or hurtful. In turn, I need to be like my mother and grandmother before me and leave each place and each person better than when I arrived. I cannot fix the world, but my mother once told me to never stop trying. Through my experiences with this company I have learned it’s not about fixing anything, it’s about helping anyway you can and every small action adds up.”