Mike Demmer, Craig Kittelson Receive Lifetime Achievement Awards

Posted on October 1, 2019 by Jodi Boyne

In recognition of their leadership to the field of the aging services and their many contributions to LeadingAge Minnesota, Mike Demmer and Craig Kittelson were honored with Lifetime Achievement Awards.  

The Lifetime Achievement Award, a rare honor reserved for exceptional individuals, has been given only nine times in the 51-year history of LeadingAge Minnesota.

MIKE DEMMER

Mike Demmer has been a quality of life champion for every resident he has served, generous with his knowledge and best practices, and committed to service delivery transformation.

Mike created Prairie Senior Cottages, becoming one of the state’s first providers of affordable, small residential housing for seniors focused on memory care. He also pioneered best practices in care for persons with dementia

Mike served on our Housing Advisory Council and the Board of Directors, where he led the charge for creating a membership category for housing with services that is now largest and fastest growing segment of membership.

He has been a quality of life champion for every resident he has served, generous with his knowledge and best practices, and committed to service delivery transformation. Mike is the very last person to call out the contributions he and his organization have made to our field and to our association. We are honored to recognize him and the difference he has made in our work and the lives of Minnesotans across the state.

CRAIG KITTELSON

Craig Kittelson spent his long career with Augustana Care and was the go-to payment system guru for LeadingAge MN. He served on every payment committee and task force we created and guided the work that led to the historic reform in care center payment that was signed into law in 2015.

As a result of his steadfast leadership and practical knowledge of finance and operations, caregivers today receive higher wages and better benefits and countless care centers have climbed out of red-ink and into the prospect of greater financial stability for those they serve and their communities.

Craig not only gave of his time and expertise to our field but also to our Association. We’ve estimated that Craig’s service to LeadingAge MN alone adds up to somewhere between 500 and 800 hours. He served on the Board of Directors and was one of the longest serving members of our Finance and Audit Committee.

Craig gave us endless guidance ranging from how we assess dues in a fair and transparent manner to how we could invest members’ dues dollars wisely to create a greater financial stability for our association into the future. We are grateful for his knowledge, leadership and service, and honored to recognize him with a Lifetime Achievement Award.