Retired CEO of Presbyterian SeniorCare Network honored for years of service

Paul Winkler, the recently retired president and CEO of Presbyterian SeniorCare Network, has been honored for his years of work in aging services.

On Oct. 25, Winkler of Oakmont received the 2021 LeadingAge Award of Honor. The award is the highest award bestowed by LeadingAge, a national organization that represents more than 5,000 nonprofit aging services providers. The award is presented to an individual who, through his or her body of work to the present day, has provided nationally significant, transformative leadership in aging services, according to a release from the organization.

Winkler had served as president and CEO since 1999, but was with the company for 34 years in various positions. This includes stints as executive vice president starting in 1987 and chief operating officer.

“It’s an award of honor and I certainly am honored and pretty overwhelmed by it really. And very humbled, especially at this time when so many folks in our field have acted so heroically, it sort of makes it extra special,” Winkler said.

In a profile from the LeadingAge website:“Winkler is known for guiding PSCN’s groundbreaking work to reimagine the care of elders living with dementia. In the early 1990s, he was part of the team that created the award-winning Woodside Place, a dementia-specific personal care community that helped launch the person-centered care movement that revolutionized the field.”

The profile goes on to mention Winkler’s extensive work with creating Dementia360, a comprehensive care management program that empowers and supports family caregivers and leading the launch of one of the nation’s first personal care homes and affordable housing communities for people living with HIV/AIDS.

“In some ways, it’s easy for me to look good because we have such a great organization and such great people,” said Winkler. “Our board has always been very progressive and has encouraged us to innovate and try to respond to community needs that are unmet.”

Winkler’s long career earned him numerous accolades. He’s received at least seven awards or distinctions during his career in addition to the LeadingAge Award of Honor. This includes being named alumnus of the year from Penn State University Dubois Campus in 2000, and eight years later being named a distinguished alumnus from Penn State’s rival, the University of Pittsburgh.

He’s been named a Grand Champion from UPMC Senior Services (2013) and received a champion award from the Hospital Council of Western Pennsylvania (1997).

“It’s always very special to be recognized by peers,” said Winkler. “I think what the common denominator would be in all of (the awards) would be the spirit of collaboration. Our organization has long in it’s DNA this strong collaborative orientation. And that’s one of our core values.”

Winkler is planning to spend his retirement helping out several nonprofits in the area. Replacing him as president and CEO of Presbyterian SeniorCare Network is Jim Pieffer, who started on Sept. 1. He’s alongside Winkler for more than three decades.

“We have been deeply blessed by Paul’s servant leadership, integrity and unfailing commitment to the people we serve,” said Pieffer in a press release. “Thanks to his vision and the solid foundation of executive leadership that he has built, the organization has evolved and is well positioned to meet the needs of future generations of older adults.”

Winkler was presented with the Award of Honor at the LeadingAge Annual Meeting and EXPO at the Georgia World Congress Center.