For Loretta Barnes, a childhood lesson in compassion set the course of her life.
When Barnes’ grandfather died in 1976, her mother encouraged her to channel her grief into something positive.
“She said, ‘Maybe you should go to one of the nursing homes and volunteer,’” Barnes said. “‘There are lots of folks there who don’t have a grandchild to visit them just like you don’t have a granddaddy to visit.’”
Credit: Phil Skinner
Credit: Phil Skinner
Barnes, who had come to Atlanta from Winder to attend Georgia State University, put on her walking shoes and headed off to volunteer at the Martin Luther King Nursing Home on Auburn Avenue. Just days later, the nursing home offered her a part-time job assisting with activities for residents.
Her simple act of kindness sparked a calling — one that would drive her for the next four decades and beyond.
A ‘country girl’ in the city
Barnes grew up a self-described “country girl” in Winder long before Atlanta’s sprawl reached the town 50 miles northeast. Her grandparents were farmers. Her father was in the military, and her mother largely stayed at home except for the three hours a day she worked at a local grocery.
Credit: Phil Skinner
Credit: Phil Skinner
At 17, Barnes moved to Atlanta to attend Georgia State University. Her journey took a sudden turn during her second year at GSU when she got the call about her grandfather’s passing.
“He was the first person that I can remember that was close to me that passed away,” Barnes said. “I was just pretty much devastated.”
That loss became the catalyst for her future. Barnes graduated from Georgia State with an associate’s degree in applied sciences and quickly transitioned into full-time nursing home work. She started as an administrative assistant, then moved on to roles as a social services assistant and business office manager.
Along the way, she met Coy Williamson and his wife, Betty Brown Williamson, two of Georgia’s first Black nursing home owners. Their mentorship left a lasting mark.
“We’re going to make you a nursing home administrator,” Betty Brown Williamson told her.
Credit: Phil Skinner
Credit: Phil Skinner
Barnes embraced that vision. Over the years, she managed We Care Enterprise, Pruitt Healthcare, and Signature Healthcare facilities in Atlanta. Her steady rise was driven by a passion for improving the lives of residents and a commitment to compassionate leadership.
Leading through change
In 2022, Barnes was tapped to become A.G. Rhodes’ Cobb County nursing home administrator. The timing was pivotal. The nonprofit provider was embarking on a $37 million renovation project and adding a new skilled nursing and memory care building. Deke Cateau, the nonprofit’s CEO, said Barnes’ “lead-by-example leadership style” and her experience with large-scale renovations made her the right person for the job.
Credit: Phil Skinner
Credit: Phil Skinner
Her leadership was instrumental. But, as the project neared completion earlier this year, Barnes, 68, retired and enjoyed a month-long European vacation. It seemed like the perfect capstone to a distinguished career.
Her retirement didn’t last long.
Within months, she returned to serve as interim administrator at the A.G. Rhodes nursing home in Grant Park. Before the search for a permanent administrator was completed, Barnes decided she wasn’t ready to fully step away. She claimed the role for herself.
Her decision to stay was met with gratitude from residents and staff alike. Marshelle Culberson, a former nurse and resident of A.G. Rhodes at Grant Park, praised Barnes.
Credit: Phil Skinner
Credit: Phil Skinner
“She has been an excellent director at all times,” Culberson said. “She’s about improvements, and she’s made so many in the short time she’s been here.”
Under Barnes’ guidance, the home’s appearance and atmosphere have been enhanced. Fresh paint brightens the space, and residents have a new coffee bar — small but meaningful changes that signal a shift in the home’s environment.
“She is always very kind,” said Culberson, a 42-year nursing veteran. “She takes time to hear what you say, whether it’s good or bad.”
Barnes recently received the top honor from the state chapter of the national advocacy group LeadingAge. The home she runs in Grant Park also was named the best nursing home in Georgia in its size category by Newsweek.
Reflecting on her career, Barnes sees clear progress in the nursing home industry. In her 45 years in the field — 40 of them as an administrator — she’s witnessed a shift in mindset. About 20 years ago, she observed the first signs of a move away from treating nursing homes like sterile institutions and toward building them as genuine communities.
“Nobody likes living in an institution,” she said.
To Barnes, quality of care is essential, as is quality of life. Her approach reframes nursing homes as hospitality centers where proper medical care is a key service.
“We need to take on the stance that we are a hotel where people are coming to get medical services,” she said. “You know everybody likes to go to a hotel.”
Barnes ensures her office is where she can see families coming and going at every home she’s led. For her, that’s a crucial part of staying connected.
“I want to see the expression on their face and hear from them,” she said. “I lead from the heart.”
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