As Chief Operating Officer, Steve Martin brings to MorningStar 36 years of experience in senior housing and long-term care. Through executive positions with several major brands Steve has proven himself to be a creative, culture-driven leader, recognized for superior performance in functional management, increased sales, operating income, market penetration and customer service.

Steve speaks to his underlying motivation: “Boyhood summers were spent with my grandparents in East Tennessee. My deep admiration and love for “Mamaw” and “Papaw” was formative not only of my character but of my life’s work. In college I sealed my professional path on discovering a new program in the School of Business for Long-Term Care Administration, the first of its kind in the nation.

Following graduation from Southern Adventist University in Chattanooga, TN, Steve entered his chosen field, promoting through the ranks of Apple Healthcare in Atlanta to become Regional Director of Operations. Three years later he joined Laing Properties as Director of Senior Housing, managing communities throughout the Southeast. For Atria Senior Living he served as Regional Director of the Southeast Division, moving on to Alterra Healthcare as Senior Regional Director of Operations.

In 2001 he began a 19-year journey with Brookdale as Senior VP of Regional Operations, overseeing 90 communities. Over the last few years he served as COO for Harmony Senior Services in Charleston, SC, leading operations for 42 communities, and as Chief of Strategic Growth for ProsperCare, proprietary software focused on recruiting in senior care.

Of the population he strives to serve, Steve remarks, “Seniors teach me wisdom to pray and carefully weigh important decisions; to listen more than you speak; and to seek understanding of other’s opinions and ideas.” And of colleagues he strives to lead, “I work diligently to embody the qualities essential to team-building: a tenacious spirit, a servant’s heart, and a contagious energy that builds a fun and supportive workplace.”

Steve was powerfully drawn to MorningStar on seeing its guiding principle is based on honoring God. “People need to be supported and coached in how to be successful. That success is made possible only in a culture-rich environment where servant-leaders model the Golden Rule of treating others the way you would want to be treated.”