Linda Walker
residential services director
Linda Walker Hall, has been with Horizons since 1992. Linda is also the agency nurse, a certified behavior analyst, and a certified supported living coach trainer. Linda began her career in the service field at Milton’s Geriatric Residential Center (now known as WFCCC), as a lead tech working for people with mental illness diagnoses. After 10 years at GRC, she started work at Pensacola Cluster Facility working for individuals with profound developmental disabilities. She soon started nursing school and transferred to Pensacola Developmental Center as a house supervisor. At PDC, she continued as house supervisor until her transfer to the Nursing Department as Charge Nurse. Linda obtained her Florida Behavior Analyst Certification while at PDC and in 1991 was recruited by John Askew at ARC in Ft. Walton Beach. Linda left PDC after another 10 years to work as Residential Manager for ARC. She began to learn about the residential side of developmental disabilities. Linda stayed with ARC FWB during the transition to Horizons of Okaloosa. During the last 40 years, her relationships with Agency for Persons with Disabilities; other provider agencies; support coordinator agencies; physicians; pharmacists; families and staff have continued and grown and are invaluable in her position as Residential Director. She supervises group homes, supported living, in-home-support, and behavior departments. She is looking forward to retirement in 8 years and leaving the department managers to carry on. She hopes to develop a residential retirement home for some of the residents that would like to retire with her.
Email Linda Walker: lwalker@horizonsfwb.com
Nikki Owen
Residential Habilation Manager
Nikki earned her Associates of Arts from Okaloosa-Walton Community College in 1994. She graduated from the University of West Florida with a Bachelor of Arts in 2003, with a major area of study in Criminal Justice and a minor in Psychology. Nikki first joined Horizons in October 1994, then again in 1998, 1999, and 2005; and has now worked at Horizons for a cumulative total of 14 years! She has previously held the positions of: Secretary/Receptionist, Administrative Secretary, Assistant to Residential Director, In-Home Support Manager, Supported Living Manager, Residential Manager, Supported Living Tech, Lead In-Home Support, Adult Services Tech, Supported Employment Consultant, Support Services Manager, Residential Services Coordinator, and Quality Assurance/Staff Development Coordinator. Since 2005, she has supervised the licensing and operations of the 4 group homes in her current position. Nikki has been certified by the Agency for Persons with Disabilities as an instructor for Introduction to Developmental Disabilities, Health and Safety, and Zero Tolerance.
Julie Nonnenmann Petrshak
Manager
I was raised in Mt.Clemens, MI which is about 10 miles north of Detroit. I married in 1976 and left shortly after, to begin an interesting 24 year adventure as an Air Force wife. We lived in Texas, Virginia, North Carolina, Upper Heyford U.K., Lakenheath U.K. and Iceland with my husband ending his career and our marriage at Eglin AFB, Florida. During this time we raised two children and travelled extensively. As a stay at home mother and wife, I was very involved in school activities and volunteered extensively with the Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts of America. As my children became older, I went to work with AAFES and the Navy Exchange as a procurement and operations clerk. Two years after moving to Crestview, Florida, I began my long and eventful career with Horizons. Originally hired in 1993 as a direct care staff at the Crestview ADT, I moved up to the manager position in 1995. Since then, I have managed In-Home Support, Community Res-Hab, Companion Service, Personal Care, Respite and Adult Day Training. I also spend a majority of my work day providing Supported Employment Services. Over the 17 years I have been with Horizons, I’ve had the pleasure of watching Horizons expand and clients achieve goals they thought were unattainable. Many of my most memorable occasions were during trips with the Crestview ADT to Graceland, Nashville, Atlanta, and Orlando (on multiple occasions). I continue to plan recreational trips like our New Year’s Eve Retreat at Adventure’s Unlimited and Camp Horizons’. One of my largest goals is to not only provide excellent training and service to my clients, but to help enrich their lives through stimulating activities and new experiences.
The Crestview Adult Day Training Program offers training in life living skills, safety, and basic education while also providing recreational and creative activities. Classes are individualized to assist all our clients in learning and attaining goals suited to their own particular needs and choices. Our program is small which allows a more nurturing environment. Our clients participate in a wide range of activities at the center and in the community. Some of these activities include basic adult education, ceramics, cooking classes, shopping in the community, attending special events, arts & crafts and exercise. We also offer a small enclave opportunity collecting recycled paper and cans from most county offices every week. Clients who participate earn minimum wage while providing a valued service in our community. Some of our ancillary services available include In-Home Support, Community Res-Hab, Companion Service, Personal Care, and Respite Service. We serve clients from Mossy Head to Holt and south Crestview to Laurel Hill.
Cindi Clark
Supported Living & In Home Support Manager
Cindi is available 24 hours per day for crisis situations. She has over twenty four years experience working for individuals with developmental disabilities; hearing deficits and traumatic brain injuries. Cindi is a career focused manager who has provided many individuals with person-centered advocacy, training to develop life skills and techniques to increase their independence. She has utilized her life/career experiences to manage other staff in attaining maximum potential professionally and personally. Cindi has a degree in Public Relations and Human Services from Okaloosa Walton College. She has held many positions through out her career. She started as a direct care staff in a group home. She was a Service Coordinator in New York and Program Director in Defuniak Spring until she came to Horizons of Okaloosa County in 4/2006. Cindi is a certified First Aid and CPR Instructor for the American Safety and Health Institute. She has had leadership trainings through Transitional Living Services in New York, LeMoyne College, Coalition for Traumatic Brain Injuries, Deaf Culture, and OMRDD trainings. Cindi is the only certified sign language interpreter at Horizons and this has made our ability to provide service to hearing impaired possible.
Michael Murphy
Behavior Department Manager
Mike is a Florida Certified Behavior Analyst III, with and AA degree. Mike is responsible for completion of Functional Behavior Assessments, development of Individual Behavior Plans, training direct care individuals in implementation of behavior plans and ensuring the correct implementation of these plans across settings. Mike has been employed by Horizons of Okaloosa County for seventeen years. Prior to coming to Horizons, Mike was employed has as Program Manager and House Manager at Fort Walton Beach Developmental Center.
Debra Diemand
Program Manager/Infant-Toddler Developmental Specialist
I oversee the Birth to Three program affiliated with Florida Early Steps. I graduated with a BA in Developmental Science from the State University of New York at Plattsburgh. After touring the world with my military husband, we settled in Northwest Florida in 1991. My first job with Horizons began in 1992, at the Children's Center. In 1994 I began working with the Birth to Three Program as an Infant-Toddler Developmental, taking over the position of Program Manager in 2006.
Janet Nancy Evans
Chief Financial Officer
Janet Nancy Evans, Chief Financial Officer joined Horizons in 2004. Having grown up in the local school system, Janet continued her education locally and earned her Associate of Arts from Okaloosa-Walton Community College in 1978 and her Bachelor of Arts, Accounting in 1980. Janet became a CPA in 1981 and went on to work at the Atlanta office of an international accounting firm. Upon her return to the Fort Walton Beach area, Janet worked with a local CPA firm and then her own CPA firm until she took an early retirement to manage her boarding stable and teach riding lessons while she raised her son. As he entered middle school, Janet re-entered the workforce, first with an accounting firm and then on to a boat dealership as the controller until the economy took it’s toll and then with the payroll management firm that was utilized by the dealership. A year later, the opportunity at Horizons came up. Janet is still active with her horses on the weekends.
The accounting office provides for the deposit and recording of all revenue and the disbursement/payment for all agency bills. They have two bookkeepers in addition to the CFO who work diligently to maintain Horizons’ high standards of internal control. Monthly financial statements are provided to the Board of Directors and the CEO. Horizons also has an external audit performed by a CPA firm and has received an unqualified opinion for the past 10 years. In addition to the agency records, the office is responsible for the Social Security funds for over 45 clients as their representative payee. The client funds are audited by the Social Security Administration annually. The accounting office also supports the IT needs of the agency with approximately 40 workstations connected to the network including remote locations as far away as Crestview being able to log in to the agency network directly. Approximately 6 years ago, Horizons moved to an electronic time keeping system agency wide that has helped the payroll process become much more manageable by providing real-time information on job staffing, potential overtime and, most importantly, alerts when a job is not staffed.
Pamela Bauchwitz
Director of Personnel and Staff Development
Pamela Bauchwitz, Director of Personnel and Staff Development, began her professional career in Chicago teaching Junior High on the south side of the city. She volunteered and tutored in many inner city projects including developing a program of departmental instruction and the design and implementation of a school library. After a half year as acting school principal, she moved to Florida and joined the ARC School of Hope in September of 1976. She began as a teacher’s aide and by 1985 Pam was promoted to Director of the School of Hope and Birth to Three where she remained until May of 2003. During this time she organized the first Walk for Hope, developed the Seascape fundraiser that has become an annual event, successfully wrote and managed several grants, oversaw the change from The School of Hope to the present day Children’s Center, and achieved national accreditation with NAEYC-the National Association for the Education of Young Children. Horizons was one of two programs in the county to achieve this. In 2003 Pam was brought to the Administrative building to conduct a feasibility study to build a new child care center and in 2004 she assumed the duties of Director of Personnel and Staff Development. Pam insures all staff is properly trained in compliance with standards and that all staff maintains current certifications. Pam completes all new hire processing, manages worker’s compensation claims, manages the maintenance for Horizons’ fleet of vehicles and serves as health and safety coordinator. She is also responsible for employee benefits. Pam credits the Principal she worked under in Chicago and John Askew former CEO of Horizons for their faith in her, support and the full autonomy they gave her in trying to make a difference in the life of the many children and families she was able to serve. The accomplishments she is most proud of are her two children, Heidi and Michael.
Missy Rogers
Support Coordinator
Missy has been working in the field of developmental disabilities since 1997. After working in a group home and in Supported Living, Missy left Horizons to become a Support Coordinator. Following 8 years of case management, she returned to Horizons management. Currently, Missy is the Supported Employment Manager and supports six Employment Consultants who assist over 100 individuals who are trying to find and maintain jobs in the community. She is also the Quality & Development Manager and assists the agency with quality assurance issues and small fundraising activities. Missy has been certified by the Agency for Persons with Disabilities to teach Introduction to Developmental Disabilities, Health and Safety and Zero Tolerance. She is a member of APSE (Association for Persons in Supported Employment), has been a United Way Loaned Executive, volunteers with Special Olympics and is active in the Fort Walton Beach Kiwanis Club. Missy is the staff sponsor for the newly formed Horizons Client Council. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Elon University in North Carolina and is originally from Virginia. She currently lives in the area with her husband and two children.
Supported Employment is a service that assists an individual with a disability to gain and maintain employment in the competitive workplace. Currently, Horizons employs 6 Employment Specialists who work with just over 100 service recipients. Together, they write resumes, complete applications, attend interviews, train on job skills, communicate with supervisors and secure transportation. Funding for this service can come through the Medicaid Waiver program with the Agency for Persons with Disabilities, Vocational Rehabilitation or the Social Security Ticket to Work program. Businesses in the community that employ some of our service recipients include: McDonald’s, WalMart, TJMaxx, Lowe’s, Publix, GCE, Pizza Hut, Okaloosa County Property Appraisers office, Destin Water Users, FishLipz, A to Z Lock and Safe, Wendy’s, Cap’t D’s, Red Lobster and many others
