Your Care Team
Meet the amazing team of people behind your care!
Open Arms is a local Chicago senior care company, and we are proud of the quality of our relationships with our clients and with each other.
Meet the faces behind the company and what they love about creating meaningful senior care experiences.
Our Leadership Team
Julie Kollada
President & Founder
Prior to the founding of Open Arms Solutions, Julie established an impressive track record as a successful entrepreneur and respected business owner. For 18 years, she cultivated and prospered with an emphasis on quality service and building professional relationships. Ultimately, however, it was the experience with her own mother Jeanne a few years back that set her on a passionate course that led to the creation of Open Arms. Jeanne, a bright and vibrant woman, was given a diagnosis of Vascular Dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease that left her completely dependent. Without warning, Julie and her family were left to figure things out – where was her mother to live? Who was to care for her? How would long-term care insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid figure into the financial picture? And who was there to help Julie untangle the vast web of questions? An intense education in and introduction to the warm and caring world of healthcare heroes followed. Home care, assisted care, skilled nursing, hospice, attorneys, physicians, nurses, and therapists – the list goes on. Julie has made the long-term commitment to giving back, guiding families through the toughest of times, and helping seniors and the infirm regain, maintain and preserve their quality of life with help from Open Arms Solutions.
Craig Reiff
Partner
With over 30 years of experience in healthcare, including medical device development and manufacturing, post acute provider services for seniors, physician services and Medicare and Medicaid managed care insurance companies, Craig is a principal in Post Acute Network Solutions. Craig was previously CEO of Home Physicians, a Chicago-based healthcare service business that provides home-based primary care and podiatry physician services for over 15,000 Medicare patients in Chicago and Baltimore. In addition Craig has held sales, marketing, management and leadership positions with American Hospital Supply Corporation, Baxter Healthcare, Allegiance Healthcare and Cardinal Health. His knowledge of the post-acute continuum of care, provider relations and in-home care helps guide Open Arms Solutions business development and operational initiatives.
Lynn Green
Director of HR, Recruitment and Training
Lynn comes to Open Arms Solutions as the Director of Recruiting & Training with 30 years of experience in Human Resources and Talent Acquisition. She has in-depth experience in designing, implementing, managing and improving processes associated with Talent Acquisition, University Relations and Human Resources. Lynn was previously the Director of Human Resources for Autism Home Support Services, a provider of therapy to children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. In addition, Lynn spent 18 years in Human Resources working at W. W. Grainger, Inc a Fortune 500 organization headquartered in Lake Forest, IL which provides maintenance, repair and operating supplies and other related products and services to more than 3.2 million businesses and institutions worldwide.
Rachel Harris BSN, RN
Director of Operations
Rachel joined the Open Arms Team as a Nurse Manager in 2017 and was promoted to Director of Operations in January 2022. While Rachel was completing her Bachelor's degree in Science of Nursing at the University of Michigan, she worked in the sports industry, helping guide student athletes and families through the recruiting process. Through these experiences, she has developed an empathetic approach that allows her to guide and comfort families through the difficult and sometimes unknown waters ahead. Since then, she has come back to the healthcare field with an excitement and compassion for helping others. She is a team player and her positive attitude helps to connect and bring joy to both our clients and families.
Our Sales Team
Jennifer Hartmann
Senior Care Advisory Manager
As Senior Care Advisory Manager, Jennifer loves educating families on senior care and helping them make informed decisions. She loves to spend time running around with her husband and four little kids.
Bryce Nacker
Senior Living Community Manager
During work, Bryce loves sitting down with seniors and their families, seeing the residents thriving with our care. After hours, Bryce can be found chasing after his four adorable daughters.
Cassidy Barth BSN, RN
Senior Living Community Nurse Manager
As one of our Senior Living Community Nurse Managers, Cassidy spends most of her time working directly with clients and their families developing important relationships and monitoring their growth. Cassidy also uses those communication skills outside the office when she is running up and down the court with her girls basketball team at Lane Tech High School.
Alex Kosmen
Administrative & Marketing Assistant
Meeting our wonderful caregivers and clients is the best part of Alex's day, helping whenever she is needed. Outside our assisting clients, Alex enjoys spending time in Wisconsin boating and ice skating.
Amanda Puls BSN, RN
Senior Living Community Nurse Manager
Amanda's passion lies in helping seniors with the journey of aging and navigating the physical & emotional health of the family system. She is also passionate about her two boys, spending time with them as they grow up.
Our Recruiting Team
Danielle Berger
Senior Recruiter
Danielle loves finding awesome, new caregivers and working with them in the beginning of their OAS journey. After our caregivers, Danielle loves going for walks and playing catch with her dog Brodie.
Deb Verschoor
Senior Recruiter
Deb knows the work she does for Open Arms makes a powerful, positive impact in the lives of our clients and their families. Outside the office, Deb spends most of her time enjoying the outdoors biking and gardening.
Alicia Szczapa
HR Compliance and Training Specialist
As a member of the Recruitment Team, Alicia serves as a source of guidance and knowledge for our caregivers. After work, Alicia uses that love of knowledge when trying new recipes with her husband and son.
Our Finance Team
Ericka Rodriguez
Finance and Operations Manager
As Finance and Operations Manager, Ericka is responsible for many important aspects of the home care business involving both the clients and caregivers of Open Arms. After hours you can find Ericka with her two daughters enjoying outdoor activities like swimming and playing soccer.
Cristina Quarrato
Finance and Administration Coordinator
Cristina loves working with each individual client and family, building a relationship with them. Outside the office, Cristina is spending time with her dog, Frank.
Rocio Sajuan
Finance and Administration Coordinator
Rocio finds joy in helping families when they have concerns or questions about our care. When she isn't helping families, she is spending time with her kids.
Our Operations & Care Coordination Team
Shari Capaldi
Care Coordination Manager
As Care Coordination Manager, Shari understands how important it is to understand each client as a person, not just what they need help doing. Seeing the connections between a caregiver and client develop and grow is what her work is all about. After work, Shari can be found cheering on her favorite team, University of Michigan football, with her family.
Kristin Reichert
Scheduling & On-Call Manager
Kristin's ability to find just the right caregiver for each client is a gift, she is able to determine what care they need and who can help. After hours, Kristin spends her time with family, friend and of course her bulldog Lily.
Alexia Lang
Scheduling Coordinator
As a member of the Scheduling Team, Alexia is a crucial part of our caregiver/client matching process. She is also a crucial part of her camping trio, including her dad and sister.
Allison Montesinos
Senior Living Care Coordinator
Allison's passion is interacting with clients and residents on a daily basis. She loves when they stop by the office to chat and share their stories. Outside the community, Allison loves cuddling with her cats and watching movies.
Angelina McMahon
Senior Living Care Coordinator
Building close relationships with clients, residents, and their families is Angelina's favorite part of working at Open Arms. When she isn't building client relationships, she is spending time with her friends and family.
Brittany Hendricks
In-Home Care Coordinator
Brittany finds joy in helping her clients live a better quality of life with our care. After helping clients during the day, Brittany enjoys travelling with friends and family on the weekends.
Jane Bowers
On-Call Coordinator
As one of our On-Call Coordinators, Jane helps a variety of people at Open Arms; from answering caregivers' shift questions to solving concerns from client family members. After work, Jane is happiest spending time with her dogs.
Katie Derrick
Scheduling Coordinator
Katie's senior care journey started over 10 years ago when she became a caregiver for Open Arms. Even now in her current role, Katie makes a true difference in bringing joy to our clients. Katie find her own joy in cooking and watching documentaries with her husband.
Katrina Betts, RN
Senior Living Support Nurse
Katrina's journey in home care began as an Open Arms Caregiver just over 8 years ago. Over all those years, her favorite part of working with seniors is hearing all their stories, hearing the amazing things they have done and seen in their lives. Outside the office, Katrina loves hiking and camping with her husband and daughter, Remi.
Kseniya Levinstein
In-Home Care Coordinator
Kseniya spends her days visiting clients, getting a chance to be involved in their life in a meaningful and wonderful way. After hours, Kseniya spends her time studying for her Nursing degree and watching movies with her fiancé and dog, Ruddy.
Laura Navarro
On-Call Coordinator
Laura's passion is in communicating with our clients, giving them space to talk, sometimes all someone needs is to be heard. When she isn't spending time with our clients, you can find Laura curled up with a good book or running around with her kiddos.
Michel Pocklington
Senior Living Care Coordinator
After working many years in senior care, Michel's favorite part of her role is connecting with clients on a personal level and finding solutions to their problems. When she's not solving her clients' problems, Michel is cooking and playing cards with her family.
Rachel Shammo
In-Home Care Coordinator
As one of our In-Home Care Coordinators, Rachel enjoys spending quality time with her clients; reminiscing with them and sharing stories together. Outside of work you can find Rachel crocheting goodies for her friends and family.
Toya Sprott
Senior Living Care Coordinator
Toya's senior care journey began as an Open Arms Caregiver many years ago. In her current role, she continues to take care of every client and puts a smile on their face each day. When she isn't working she enjoys spending time with her daughter and relaxing.
Taylor Burnham
Scheduling Coordinator
Before beginning her role as one of our Scheduling Coordinators, Taylor worked as a caregiver for more than 7 years helping seniors in the community. The insight and advice clients have shared with is Taylor favorite part of her role. She has taken that advice and applied it to her daily life with her fiancé and their fur babies.
Titilola Ajayi
Scheduling Coordinator
Just like so many of our wonderful team members, Titilola began her senior care journey as an Open Arms Caregiver. Her passion is helping others, caregivers and clients, in whatever they need. When she isn't helping others, Titilola loves reading a good book outside on a beautiful day.
Our Caregiving Team
Fatimo Babawale
Lead Caregiver
Fatimo Babawale has been with Open Arms since April 2019 and has worked with clients ranging from only needing companion care to clients with severe dementia, needing full assistance. When we send Fatimo to a client, we know they will be taken care of as if they were family.
Pamela Patton-Salas
Senior Living Lead Caregiver
Pam Salas started working with Open Arms since April 2021 and started working with clients right away and quickly became a familiar face. Pam sees a need with a client or another caregiver looking for assistance and jumps right in – confident with her assessment of the situation.
Veronica Moore
Lead Caregiver
Veronica Moore has worked with Open Arms since May 2017 and it was clear she would be perfect for our Embrace Memory Care program. Veronica was the perfect choice for Lead Caregiver given her ability to empathize with any situation and put those around her at ease, whether it’s a client or a new caregiver.