The GROW program at Bounce supports both aspiring and experienced entrepreneurs as they bring their ideas to life. The program focuses on minorities and women. Terressa Dixon-Pickett is a graduate of the sixth cohort of the MORTAR at Bounce program, our 15-week business accelerator. Currently, she is in our Next Level Business Incubator.
From an early age, Terressa Dixon-Pickett knew she wanted to help older adults in need. Her first job was at an adult daycare facility where she loved listening to senior adults tell stories about the past. She felt like she had 20 different grandparents; she was hooked.
However, in 2018, while working as a community liaison at a hospice agency, she decided she needed to make a change. The work became more about making money and less about care.
That’s when she started Sunshine Senior Staffing Agency, a non-medical healthcare agency that provides quality care with dignity and respect.
Sunshine Senior Staffing serves senior adults in independent living and assisted living settings, as well as those with, in-home healthcare. Terressa and her team provide medication reminders, meal prep, light housekeeping, companion visits, end-of-life support and more. She wants to “bring the sunshine” to individuals, especially during their most vulnerable time in life.
Currently, Sunshine Senior Staffing Agency has eight to 10 caregivers at a time and staff to answer the phone 24/7. She is headquartered in Fairlawn, in an office space she was able to move into earlier this year.
Of course, Terressa wants continued business growth for her company, but only as long as it means she is making a difference by providing quality care to senior individuals. One of her biggest struggles is her business being taken seriously in the industry. With so many big facilities in the area, many individuals often see Sunshine Senior Staffing as just another company. While Terressa will send some of her team to facilities to help with staffing, her focus is on private home healthcare.
“Many companies can get into a hiring crunch and don’t hire the right individuals because they aren’t detailed during the process,” she said. “I will grow at a snail’s pace if it means keeping the integrity of Sunshine Senior Staffing Agency.”
She attributes being in MORTAR at Bounce’s cohort 6 to keeping her eye on her goals. The most important takeaway from being in the program was meeting like-minded individuals who were going through similar struggles.
“Nobody understands what you’re going through as an entrepreneur unless they are doing it, too,” she said. “Even though many of us were in different industries, we had the same goal.”
Terressa says that other entrepreneurs, especially Black women entrepreneurs, shouldn’t give up on their dreams and must believe in themselves.
“Being able to keep the integrity of why I started this business is how I continue to keep my passion,” she said. “It all starts with me. As long as I can keep my core values, we’ll be fine.”
For more information about Sunshine Senior Staffing Agency, visit https://sunshineseniorstaffing.com/.
