New Rochelle's Senior Care, United Hebrew Selects New Board Member

NEW ROCHELLE, NY — Senior care provider, United Hebrew, has a new member joining its board of directors, according to the organization’s President and CEO Rita Malbi.

The founder and former CEO of Therapy Resources of New York, Shirley Truman-Smith, will help to ensure that United Hebrew maintains its status as a leading senior care facility, according to Malbi.

Truman-Smith comes with over 30 years of experience in rehabilitation services to her new role and will help Westchester’s aging population with her insights as a clinician and healthcare executive, said the president.

“We’re thrilled to have Shirley join our board and we welcome the healthcare and executive leadership expertise that she brings,” Malbi said in a statement. “Her background integrates perfectly with what we need to uphold our high standards of care and meet the growing demand for the services we provide.”

Before selling her company in 2016, Truman-Smith’s business had more than 200 employees for over 25 years in the New York metropolitan area. It was founded to bring high-quality rehabilitation services to children and adults in the region, which is a factor for why the entrepreneur is joining the United Hebrew board of directors, said the new board member.

“I was attracted to United Hebrew after seeing first-hand the special way their residents are cared for,” Truman-Smith said in a prepared statement.

Smith had visited the facility in 2018 while visiting a friend’s father in United Hebrew’s care. While touring the facility, she was impressed with the healthcare environment and to see residents involved in an array of activities, the businesswoman said.

“I was amazed at how happy and engaged the residents were. I had never seen such calmness in a nursing facility. The staff seemed to go above and beyond what’s expected. United Hebrew exceeded my expectations of what senior care providers can deliver,” Truman-Smith said.

Before starting her rehab business, Truman-Smith had a career as a speech language pathologist in the Virginia public school system, an independent contractor in the Big Apple’s and she opened her own private practice in Connecticut. She also earned a master’s degree in Speech Language Pathology from George Washington University and a doctorate in Law and Public Policy from Northeastern University. She has also volunteered for The Speakers Club, USA and was a mentor to young people while on the Advisory Board of Greenwich Hospital, according to the entrepreneur.

Truman-Smith prides herself on “helping others who have limitations in their ability to help themselves.”