Brian Aman joined Gracedale in 2025 in the Dietary Department. Up until then, he worked in a range of roles within the hospitality industry, from sous chef to kitchen manager. Like many chefs and dietary workers, Brian had back pain at times from the wear-and-tear of the industry work, but it was typically a flare-up of sciatica—which was gone in a few days.
As Brian began to lift more heavy boxes in the role of store room manager at Gracedale, the sciatica worsened. He started having pain more days in a row. He learned at the doctor that he had three discs pressing on his sciatic nerve.
“Anything could trigger it,” he says. “I would come into work but I wasn’t able to stand straight at that point, due to the sciatic nerve pain. I looked like a question mark. I would use the wooden railings to hold me up as I walked through the hallways.”
He tried everything from pain management techniques to radiofrequency ablation. He wanted to go to work; but some days he was unable to get out of bed.
“I kept pushing,” he says. “When I was just at home, I felt useless. I wanted to do my part and do my job and get through it.”
The staff at Gracedale valued Brian’s dedication and work ethic, and they were willing to make adjustments to keep him on board. In fact, the Deputy Director of Human Resources, Lore McFadden, appreciates that some employees need a career pivot or transition to better suit their needs and talents. She is also proficient at helping employees discover new job opportunities. So, when she heard of Brian’s situation, she found a position in the Laundry Department that might be a better fit for him, even if on a temporary basis.
“I knew after my first conversation with Brian that he had more to offer Northampton County. With knowledge of a possible opening in our payroll department in the near future, I didn’t want to lose a great employee. Offering the laundry position to Brian so that he could sit more often bought us both time.”
Brian did well in this role, yet he was still standing for long periods of time. Wendy, the Laundry Manager, saw that he was still suffering and reported that to HR. Once the payroll position was posted, Lore contacted Brian immediately. As it turned out, the payroll system used at Gracedale—Kronos—was the same one Brian used when he worked at Giant, making him an even better match for the job. Brian interviewed for the position and was hired!
“The people at Gracedale were compassionate about my situation. They were willing to work with me to put me in a position to succeed,” he says. “As soon as I saw the system, I had a comfort level with it.”
Brian shines in his new role. He’s overcome many challenges including helping the department to transition from Kronos to a new payroll system, and onboarding two new employees. Thanks to Gracedale’s Human Resources Department proactively addressing a valued team member’s struggles and collaborating with them, Brian is able to continue to working and contributing to the community while greatly reducing his physical pain, and Gracedale gained a valuable addition to its Payroll Department.
“It was a long, strange trip in a short amount of time,” he says. “From September to April he went from being brand new in the Payroll Department to a senior person in that department.”
In another positive development, Brian underwent a 2-hour surgery that greatly reduced his pain.
“If it wasn’t for people at Gracedale, I wouldn’t have a job,” he says. “And without the healthcare [benefits] provided by the County, I would not have gotten the surgery that stopped the pain. After nine months of debilitating pain, I am now pain free,” he smiled.
“And now I have a new career path that I can age with.”