Each day, Kitchen Manager/Head Chef Brian Pike wakes up with just one objective: ensuring that residents of Harvest Hill enjoy a fulfilling culinary experience suited to their individual tastes and preferences.

Brian has worked in food service in one form or another for more than 30 years. He started in the Harvest Hill kitchen as a prep cook and worked his way into new positions over 20 years before being promoted to his current role in 2021.

“I’ve really enjoyed working at Harvest Hill, and I have so many fond memories of time spent with staff and residents,” said Brian. “Serving our residents is important to me and my team because Harvest Hill is their home. It’s our mission to make sure they are comfortable, satisfied and enjoying tasty, nutritious meals every day.”

As Kitchen Manager/Head Chef, Brian is responsible for ordering all the food, equipment and necessities for the Harvest Hill kitchen, preparing daily and weekly menus, scheduling staff shifts, and managing staff to ensure food quality, cleanliness and the daily operations of the kitchen. Brian also helps coordinate Harvest Hill’s monthly resident meeting, where residents come together with kitchen staff to provide feedback on various menu items and offer suggestions for new dishes.

“Our goal as a food service team is to provide healthy, delicious meals for residents every day,” said Brian. “We provide three meals a day, 365 days a year, so it’s a big task at times, but we tackle the challenge head on. It takes the support of all of our kitchen staff to make it happen.”

Brian hails from Ascutney, a small village in the town of Weathersfield, Vermont. He began in food service as a deli and pizza cook while attending high school in Claremont, New Hampshire. He went on to work at resorts throughout Vermont, including the Ascutney Mountain Resort, Okemo Mountain Resort, and Hawk Inn, where he also filled in front-of-house as a server, bartender and manager.

In his role today, Brian said he most enjoys interacting with Harvest Hill residents, getting to know them and hearing their stories, dreaming up new specials and hearkening back to old favorites, all while cooking up creative, nutritious dishes that can put a smile on their face.

“I’ve always enjoyed being involved with customer service, and I love working with our residents,” Brian said.

Among the many long-tenured staff members at Harvest Hill is Housekeeping Manager Deb Baker, who recently celebrated her 20th work anniversary at the community.

In her wide-ranging role at Harvest Hill, Deb is happy to take care of anything that needs doing. During the pandemic, when restrictions prevented residents from visiting the dining room, she helped deliver breakfast and lunch to their apartments. Typical days, though, tend to stick to a schedule, she said.

“I come in, get my housekeeping equipment and start cleaning the common areas. I always say good morning to the residents, who are usually getting up and heading to breakfast around that time,” said Deb, whose two longtime employees, Joanne Rogers and Stacey Jorgensen, have been with her for 16 years. “We clean anything that needs it, and we also clean 14 apartments a day, working around residents’ schedules.”

“The residents we clean for are just awesome people,” she added. “A lot of them can’t wait to see us — some stay in their apartments so they can ask what our week or weekend was like. They just want to chit chat. Sometimes they’ll have a little list of things for us to help them with, whether that means getting a container off the top shelf, opening a jar of jam or helping them put on a shoe.”

Deb has had experience with the elderly from a young age, she said. The oldest of six children, she was brought up around her grandparents and great grandmother, and, as a junior high student in the 70s, she volunteered after school reading and making crafts with residents at the nursing home that used to be run by Alice Peck Day Memorial Hospital.

Deb has been married for 20 years and has a stepson, Adam; two daughters, Jennifer and Carrington, both born at Alice Peck Day; and two granddaughters. When she’s not working, she enjoys crafting, gardening, researching family genealogy, birdwatching, and doing photography, her favorite hobby.

Deb shoots weddings, high school senior pictures, and maternity photos, but most of all, loves photographing wildlife. Recently, Harvest Hill’s activities director asked her to bring in some of her work for display and give a talk to residents.

“I’m also the person who takes photos of the residents during some of the activities, and I always take a photo of new residents when they first move in,” said Deb. “That photo and a little write up go into an album that’s kept in the library, so if another resident wants to know who a certain resident is, they can just go into the library, open up the photo album and see.”

Looking back at her time at Harvest Hill, Deb said, building relationships with the residents and helping them with what they need has been extremely fulfilling.

“I’m proud of the things I do here,” she said. “It’s so rewarding. I love working with the residents. I love their stories. They’re all like grandparents to me.”

All photos below were taken by Deb Baker.

Harvest Hill’s Activity Director Carla Venti has been coming up with new recreational, educational and musical programs for 10 years.