50+ Lifestyles

Meet our New Executive Director

By Karen McCoy
Marketing Consultant
Ridgecrest Village

Ridgecrest Village is proud to announce our new Executive Director, Cris Vetter.  We are excited to have her join us. She will bring a bright, new perspective to Ridgecrest.  She has already begun sharing her ideas for our future – how refreshing.

Cris was raised in Wilton and now resides in DeWitt. She and her husband have two delightful children at home and two adult children starting careers of their own. They are very active in their community with the many charities that they support, as well as supporting their children’s activities.  She loves horses and has recently relocated to the countryside to keep her horses close by.

Cris holds a degree in Elementary Education/Early Childhood Development from the University of Iowa, but due to job opportunities after she graduated, she changed her focus and began working with older adults.  She went back to school and received her Iowa Nursing Home Administrator license from Des Moines Area Community College.  She also holds an Assisted Living Manager certification from Iowa Health Care Association. 

Cris is no stranger to Ridgecrest Village. She once held the position as our Administrator in our Crest Health Center.  When she applied for our position, we were thrilled.  We were already familiar with her commitment to residents, her work ethic and her ability to look into the future and strategically plan for new and exciting developments in senior health care.  So the opportunity to have her back as our Executive Director was just what we were looking for.

As Cris has worked in senior services for the past 20 years, she has seen many changes. However, she recognizes those changes were small in comparison to the changes that are taking place now and those still on the horizon. There are immense challenges facing today’s providers. Some of these challenges include our ever-changing regulatory environment, the revamping of our payment models, finding and retaining a qualified and compassionate workforce, and meeting the expectations of today’s consumers of retirement and health care services.

She is looking forward to working with the residents, staff, board of directors and other providers in the community to address some of the challenges mentioned above.  With Ridgecrest’s trusted and well-respected name in the community, she realizes the organization’s opportunity and obligation to be a leader and partner in changing the landscape of services as we know them now.

Cris is very grateful for the opportunity to return to the Ridgecrest family. She will tell you she might have once left Ridgecrest, but Ridgecrest never left her.  And now, she is back and doing her part to help residents “make themselves at home.”