Tips from Trestle: The Senior Living Food and Hospitality Podcast

Aaron Fish
  • 5.0 (4)
  • Management
  • Updated Weekly

Tips From Trestle is a podcast focused on discussion about senior living food, hospitality, & the community experience. Hosted by THE Hospitality Executive to the Senior Living Industry Aaron Fish, he shares his thoughts, musings and discussions about food & beverage operations, community & resident experiences, and trends & happenings in the senior living industry. To be considered as a guest for TFT, please send an email to info@trestlehc.com Tips from Trestle is sponsored by: - eMenuCHOICE POS - Clark Pro - DiningRD Trestle Tactics is sponsored by - Gordon Food Service

  1. 6d ago

    Death Isn’t a Failure | Ep. 528

    What if a better end-of-life experience in senior living begins long before someone’s final days? Aaron Fish sits down with Heather Holmes, co-founder of The Vibe, a nature-inspired dementia care home in Gretna, Nebraska. Heather brings experience in senior living, therapeutic recreation, and death doula work to a candid discussion about dementia care, family conversations, and the way communities support caregivers through grief. They explore how The Vibe plans to use gardens, natural light, music, food, and a quieter daily rhythm to create a sense of home. Heather also explains why she wants teams to learn each person’s story early, talk openly about end-of-life wishes, and give families room to ask difficult questions. The conversation ends with a practical challenge for senior living operators: get clear on what you believe about aging, caregiving, and death—then ask your team what they believe. A thoughtful listen for leaders in memory care, assisted living, hospitality, and family support. TFT is sponsored by WiseOx AI, LINK Consulting, Dining With Dementia, & The 100% Leader

    Death Isn’t a Failure | Ep. 528

  2. Sep 21

    Why Senior Living Leaders Burn Out | Ep. 527

    Why do capable senior living leaders become overwhelmed, reactive, and stuck answering every question? In this episode of Tips from Trestle, Aaron Fish sits down with Jill Valdez, Founder and COO of Link Consulting, to explore one of senior living’s most pressing operational challenges: leadership clarity. Jill explains why a strong caregiver, department head, or marketer is not automatically prepared to become an executive director—and what organizations must do to help emerging leaders succeed. Together, Aaron and Jill unpack how unclear roles, weak delegation, and inconsistent accountability affect team culture, employee engagement, resident satisfaction, family trust, occupancy, and financial performance. You’ll hear practical strategies for: Delegating without losing controlSetting clear decision-making guardrailsBuilding accountability through standups, shift handoffs, and KPIsDeveloping department leaders instead of creating bottlenecksConnecting leadership behavior to resident experienceDiagnosing the gap between today’s reality and a thriving community vision A must-listen for executive directors, regional operators, owners, clinical leaders, hospitality professionals, and anyone building stronger senior living teams.

    Why Senior Living Leaders Burn Out | Ep. 527

  3. Sep 21

    Why Senior Living Leaders Burn Out | Ep. 527

    Senior living leadership is not about one executive director carrying every decision. It is about giving capable people clarity, boundaries, coaching, and accountability. Aaron Fish welcomes Jill Valdez of Link Consulting for a candid conversation on leadership development in senior living, assisted living, memory care, hospice, and aging services. They discuss the common promotion gap: exceptional caregivers and department leaders are often elevated into management roles without the business, communication, delegation, or operational training required to thrive. Jill shares a practical framework for leaders who want to step out of the “answer every question” role while still protecting resident care, compliance, finances, and culture. The conversation covers delegation, employee engagement, accountability systems, leadership coaching, team development, turnover, resident satisfaction, and a real hospice turnaround that produced four consecutive profitable months. If your community feels dependent on one person, this episode offers a better path: build clarity, develop people, and create a culture where residents, families, employees, and performance can all thrive.

    Why Senior Living Leaders Burn Out | Ep. 527

  4. Sep 15

    From POS to Operating System: Senior Living's AI Shift | Ep. 526

    Can AI make senior living feel more personal, not less? In this episode of Tips From Trestle, host Aaron Fish talks with Lance Bell, CEO and Chief AI Officer of ServingIntel, about how senior living communities are killing pen-and-paper workflows and building unified AI operating systems for dining, housekeeping, retail, and maintenance. Aaron and Lance explore how proactive AI check-ins let caregivers walk into a resident's room already knowing about her recent yoga class or an overcooked breakfast — turning small moments into major trust builders. They also cover in-room pre-ordering, voice-AI order taking, real-time AI satisfaction surveys, and how eliminating operational friction directly impacts NOI, staffing, and resident quality of life. A practical, candid conversation for senior living operators exploring AI, hospitality technology, and resident experience strategy. Learn more about ServingIntel at servingintel.com.

    From POS to Operating System: Senior Living's AI Shift | Ep. 526

  5. Sep 1

    From Michelin Kitchens to Senior Living Dining Rooms | Ep. 525

    What happens when a two-time James Beard semifinalist brings restaurant systems into senior living dining? Host Aaron Fish sits down with Steven Cameron, VP of Culinary Experience at Trestle Hospitality Concepts, to break down the four complaints every dining room hears — and which ones are solvable with equipment and SOPs versus culture and training. Steven shares the real story of clocking a 28-minute table greet, then using host stands, back waiters, server sections, and reservations to cut dinner service from two and a half hours to 52 minutes, with residents helping shape the change. They also cover point-of-sale systems senior living operators overlook, how to adapt fine dining structures for assisted living and memory care, and how a standardized catering program can become an unexpected revenue stream. Connect with Steven at trestlehospitalityconcepts.com or scameron@trestlehc.com. Tips from Trestle is sponsored by: WiseOx AI, Dining with Dementia Workshop, and the 100% Leader. Keywords: senior living dining, restaurant efficiency, hospitality leadership, point-of-sale systems, resident experience, dining room service, senior living operations, culinary leadership.

    From Michelin Kitchens to Senior Living Dining Rooms | Ep. 525

  6. Aug 18

    Music, Muscle, and Memory: A Dementia Fitness Breakthrough | Ep. 524

    Falls are one of the biggest fears in memory care — but new research suggests the fix might be simpler than we think. Host Aaron Fish sits down with Deborah Rothschild, founder of ToughAgers LLC and creator of Debra Does Fitness, live from the Eden Alternative International Conference. Deborah unpacks a 9-week study comparing resistance training, aerobic exercise, and social visits in people with dementia — and reveals which approach actually improved cognition. She also explains the four types of memory that shape how you should coach a fitness session, why she borrows principles from her former career as a Montessori preschool teacher, and how music tied to someone's "sticky years" can unlock movement other cues can't reach. A practical, research-backed conversation for anyone building fall-prevention and wellness programming in senior living.Tips from Trestle is sponsored by: WiseOx: https://bit.ly/TFT_WiseOxDining With Dementia: https://bit.ly/TFT_DwD100% Leader: https://bit.ly/TFT_100 #TFT523 #SeniorLiving #DementiaCare #FallPrevention #MemoryCare #AgingWell #SeniorFitness #ToughAgers #EdenAlternative #HealthyAging #CaregiverTips #LongTermCare #BrainHealth #MontessoriMethod #IndependentLiving #ActivitiesDirector

    Music, Muscle, and Memory: A Dementia Fitness Breakthrough | Ep. 524

  7. Aug 10

    Predict, Prepare, Recover: Senior Living Readiness | Ep. 523

    When disaster strikes a senior living community, the immediate emergency is only the beginning. Aaron Fish welcomes Claudine Ripert of Critical Control to discuss senior living disaster preparedness, property protection, resident relocation, insurance coverage, FEMA documentation, and the long tail of recovery. Claudine explains her Predict, Prepare, Recover framework and shares why leadership teams need clearer decision authority, stronger vendor relationships, regular insurance reviews, and better documentation before an event occurs. This episode is essential listening for senior living executives, regional operators, executive directors, risk-management teams, and anyone responsible for protecting residents, teams, and community assets. Tips from Trestle is sponsored by: WiseOx: https://bit.ly/TFT_WiseOxDining With Dementia: https://bit.ly/TFT_DwD100% Leader: https://bit.ly/TFT_100 #TFT523 #SeniorLiving #SeniorLivingLeadership #EmergencyPreparedness #DisasterRecovery #BusinessContinuity #RiskManagement #ResidentSafety #HealthcareLeadership #AssistedLiving #LongTermCare #SeniorCare #CrisisManagement #FEMA #DisasterResilience #OperationalExcellence

    Predict, Prepare, Recover: Senior Living Readiness | Ep. 523

  8. Aug 4

    High Potential vs. High Performer: What Every Senior Living Leader Gets Wrong | Ep. 522

    Are you sitting on untapped talent inside your own community? In this episode, Aaron Fish talks with Samantha Schreiber, Senior HR Manager at Floor & Decor and former HR Director at Phoenix Senior Living, about the critical difference between high-performing and high-potential employees in senior living. They break down the nine-box talent planning tool, explore why low effort is often a symptom of feeling undervalued rather than a personality flaw, and calculate the real cost of quiet quitting and turnover in food and hospitality roles. Plus: practical, budget-conscious recognition strategies that work even when raises aren't an option, and why employee engagement directly drives resident satisfaction. A must-listen for executive directors, administrators, and HR leaders in senior living. Tips from Trestle is sponsored by: WiseOx: https://bit.ly/TFT_WiseOxDining With Dementia: https://bit.ly/TFT_DwD100% Leader: https://bit.ly/TFT_100

    High Potential vs. High Performer: What Every Senior Living Leader Gets Wrong | Ep. 522
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About

Tips From Trestle is a podcast focused on discussion about senior living food, hospitality, & the community experience. Hosted by THE Hospitality Executive to the Senior Living Industry Aaron Fish, he shares his thoughts, musings and discussions about food & beverage operations, community & resident experiences, and trends & happenings in the senior living industry. To be considered as a guest for TFT, please send an email to info@trestlehc.com Tips from Trestle is sponsored by: - eMenuCHOICE POS - Clark Pro - DiningRD Trestle Tactics is sponsored by - Gordon Food Service

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