About The Owners
The Founders of the local office of Comfort Keepers are Ellen Smith and Andy Smith. They were inspired to start this senior in-home care business because of their own parent’s wonderful experiences with caregivers. Their mission is to treat each client like their own mother or father, and to raise the ethical standards of this field.
Ellen Smith, M.A., LMFT, Co-Owner of Comfort Keepers, is our Client Care Manager and continuously helps solve client problems, along with our other care coordinators. Ellen has a Masters Degree in Clinical Psychology, a Bachelors Degree in Early Childhood Education and is a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist. Ellen has helped Comfort Keepers clients and families deal with issues of aging since 2002. Ellen was a Patient Educator at a cancer center for 10 years. Ellen was also a therapist in private practice for 10 years. In helping families who have an elderly loved one, Ellen has a wonderful blend of knowledge, compassion, problem-solving, years of experience, advanced education, and common sense.
Andy Smith, M.S., our President, Co-Owner of Comfort Keepers, is our Business Manager. He has Bachelors and Masters Degrees from UCLA. He ran his own executive search business for 16 years, and has been hiring or consulting to the hiring process for 38 years. As a recognized expert in the field, Andy serves as an expert witness for eldercare abuse cases. Andy makes sure that each applicant is thoroughly interviewed and screened, and is expertly evaluated. He oversees the extensive reference and background checking for all finalist candidates. Only 1 out of about 9 applicants — only the very best — are hired to become caregivers for their clients! Andy's goal is to raise the ethical standards of the homecare industry, and to make sure that seniors are treated with the respect and dignity that they so richly deserve.
