Our Team

Kyla joined Five Star in July 2019 and has worked at Heartlands Ellicott City & most recently at HeartFields at Bowie. Her love and respect for seniors was passed onto her from her mother who has worked as a private duty aid for over 25 years. Although she grew up “working” with her mom any chance she got, her career in the senior industry officially began four years ago.  Kyla enjoys meeting with, and being able to assist families to find a new home for a loved one in need. She truly believes that every senior deserves to receive a high quality of living as they are aging. She uses her knowledge of the senior industry to educate families.  Her goal is to help every family she encounters. Kyla spends her time away from work with family, friends, her husband and raising their two beautiful boys.  

Mandi is unique and special because she shares the same birthday as her mother and grandmother. She always had a passion for modelling and dancing. At the age of three, she attended Flair Modeling School in Baltimore, Maryland. She also appeared on the first TV series show called, So You Think You Can Dance in 2005. It aired on TV for all her friends and family members to see. She also appeared in US Magazine. She is not new to HeartFields at Bowie, she began her career there in 2003 first as a dishwasher and then a care manager. During that time, she enjoyed caring for seniors so much that she  pursued a career as an Activity Assistant and later promoted to the Activities Director. She has also worked in different nursing homes and at Prince Georges Community College Sage Program as an Activity Course Instructor. She earned her certification from the National Certification Council for Activity Professionals. She is a proud parent of two children, a girl and boy and she loves spending time with them.  
 

Barbara joined Five Star over 14 years ago. As you can see by her length of service she really enjoys working for the company. She began her career as a charge nurse, promoted to Bridge to Rediscovery Director almost 7 years ago and is also an LPN. Barbara has a passion to work with residents with memory challenges. She believes in our mission which states we provide a safe and nurturing environment where adults with Alzheimer’s and other dementias can share a positive life experience. She enjoys seeing the smiles on the faces of family members knowing their parents wake up each day with a purpose. She strongly feels that she also brings the clinical aspect to the program which is extremely important.

Margie migrated from the Philippines to the United States in 2009 and originally settled in Illinois. There she began her career in senior living food service. Originally hired as a dietary aide, her hard work and dedication to the organization and residents was quickly rewarded. In a facility of over 300 residents, she individually ran a small café within the facility, along with an opportunity as office assistant in the front office. After moving to Maryland with her family, she furthered her career working in Assisted Living and joined Five Star Senior - HeartFields at Bowie. Once again, her hard work and dedication were quickly recognized and in just over two years, she was promoted from Dietary Aide, Cook, Lead Cook and recently Director of Food & Beverage. She is a Certified ServSafe Food Protection Manager through the National Restaurant Association and a Certified Food Service Manager through the Prince George’s County Health Department. When she is not providing outstanding service to the residents of HeartFields, she enjoys spending time with her husband, two sons, her sister and mother in Southern Maryland. 

Maria is a native Washingtonian who moved to the Maryland suburbs with her family at a young age. She graduated from Largo High School and attended Bowie State University. She has held the position of Executive Assistant and Chief Administrative Officer for more than 29 years in both the legal and healthcare fields. Maria has been hands on with both the developmentally disabled and senior adult population during these 29 years, where she has worked in areas of legislation supporting programs and researching benefits for developmentally disabled and senior adults. Maria joined the team at HeartFields at Bowie over a year ago and she works with Managers and team members to ensure the continued development in staff. She wants to ensure that resident and families receive the Five Star Quality that they deserve. During her down time, she enjoys quality time with family and friends and traveling the country to watch her rising athletic scholar son.