Dave Rea, Lead Residential Manager
Life shapes all of us in different ways. Dave Rea began life in York, Nebraska. Rea spent his formative years like many other boys growing up in the Midwest.
“Then I went into the service from 1969 to 1971. I spent 13 months in Vietnam in the 101st Airborne Division,” Rea said.
Then he came back home. Back then, the homecoming was different for soldiers. “There was no debriefing and no homecoming celebration. I came home as I had left, with no one really noticing.”
For many who served in the Vietnam War, it wasn’t easy just coming back and continuing on with life.
“I had problems and I found myself homeless for about a year in San Jose, California. But, I worked myself out of it. I got a job and found shelter,” he said.
Rea said it’s not easy to “get off the street.”
“First, you have to get an address to get a job. So, I found a boarding house that I could rent for about $30 a week,” he said.
Rea’s career in the Human Services field started with that first job that got him off the street. “I started working on a suicide crisis hotline.”
From California, Rea moved to New Hampshire and worked for the Crotchet Mountain Rehabilitation Center.
“Then I was offered a job as manager of a Developmentally Disabled Group Home for adults. I did that and then moved back to Nebraska because my parents were getting older and needed help."
That is when Rea started working as Relief Staff for Epworth Village, Inc.
“I worked through the trenches, became a full time Residential Therapeutic Specialist, Shift Leader and today Lead Residential Manager,” he said.
His second day in his first management position at Epworth, Rea put up the word “Leadership” on his wall. Today it’s still there, each letter with a message about how best to guide others such as “L . . .Listen effectively, E . . . Enlightenment, A . . . Authentic” and the list goes on.
Rea's leadership qualities make him a great fit for the position of Lead Residential Manager over all six residential facilities at Epworth Village. His job is a collaborator, communicator and organizer of the day-to-day functions and needs of this aspect of the agency's family-centered programming. Rea said he enjoys being able to remain connected to the children in Epworth's care as well as the compassionate staff who are working with them each and every day.
Rea said he is at home in his leadership role, serving people.
“I’ve always been for the underdogs in life. I’m here because I like giving children and families a fair chance at life that they otherwise would not have.”
He also likes seeing the successes that are made.
“It is rewarding when the children do something they haven’t done at home. It’s the little things. For example, we had a child here who was horrible at softball because no one had ever played with him. By the time he left, he could hit the ball pretty well. Everything is rewarding. It’s a rewarding job,” he said.
Rea said the staff help make everything worthwhile.
“I love the staff and what they are doing. All the residential staff members are committed. I enjoy seeing them work with the children and help them with challenges in their lives,” he said.
“I’m here because the children are our future.”