Mission continues for Right at Home franchisee

For Mike Steiner, franchise owner with Right at Home*, recognition of the nation’s military members goes far beyond Veteran’s Day next week. As a veteran of the United States Navy, he relates well to the clients of his in-home senior-care business who also served, but he also makes a concerted effort to recruit and hire other veterans. Steiner, who served in the 1980s before a long career as a project manager for Motorola, expressed confidence that military members learned and could replicate the same skills the Navy instilled in him, which prepared him for a life in business. “My experiences while I was in Navy shaped me into who I am today,” Steiner said. “It is where I developed my work ethic and was taught respect, discipline and the value of relationships. That’s why I make a strong effort to hire veterans. Not only does it bring satisfaction to our veteran clients, but [veterans’] determination is a known entity.” His Navy career took him far from his native Illinois to places as far away as San Diego and Gaeta, Italy, where he was stationed aboard the USS Puget Sound for two years as a data systems technician. Once he was honorably discharged in 1984, he returned home to Illinois and a career at Motorola, but for years he felt the need to go into business for himself. Steiner decided to create that opportunity for himself through franchising, and because he valued using his work ethic and interpersonal skills to help people, he quickly realized he wanted to work in the service industry. He began exploring the senior-care industry after seeing the need in the marketplace during years of helping his great aunt and mother. He chose to partner with Right at Home because of the brand’s integrity and support system, Steiner said. But once he opened his business in Grayslake, Illinois, to serve Chicago’s north suburbs in Lake County, he made it his mission to employ veterans and pair them with senior or disabled clients who also served in the military. “It’s incredibly gratifying to see the amount of joy and progress our clients can have when we’re able to pair them with caregivers able to relate to their stories and past experiences,” Steiner said. Omaha, Nebraska-based Right at Home has more than 350 franchise locations in the United States.