Former Board Chair Dorothy Schlimme Champions Dignity, Quality, and Voice in Adult Family Homes
In Washington’s adult family home community, leadership is measured not only by the number of homes operated, but by the depth of service, the strength of advocacy, and the willingness to stand up for the people and businesses that make home-based care possible. Former Board Chair Dorothy Schlimme has spent years doing all three.
As co-owner of Angel Heaven Estate, Schlimme has built a reputation as both a seasoned provider and a tireless advocate for adult family homes. Her career reflects the kind of grassroots leadership that has helped shape the industry in Washington: practical, persistent, and rooted in the belief that quality care begins with people who are willing to speak up, train others, and lead by example.
That leadership has taken many forms. Schlimme has served in key organizational roles within the adult family home community, including board leadership and provider advocacy. She has also been closely involved in efforts to educate operators, strengthen care standards, and help providers navigate the demands of a highly regulated field. Her influence extends beyond her own business, reaching into the broader policy and training conversations that affect homes across the state.
At Angel Heaven Estate, those values are visible in the day-to-day work of care. The home reflects Schlimme’s belief that adult family homes should be clean, professional, active, and deeply respectful of the people who live there. Residents are encouraged to stay engaged. Staff are expected to bring energy and compassion to their work. And the home itself is managed with a focus on structure, accountability, and dignity.
That philosophy was on display during a recent visit by H.E. Ambassador David Kerich to Angel Heaven Estate. The visit highlighted not only the home’s warmth and professionalism, but also the larger significance of adult family homes as a care option. For Schlimme, it was another opportunity to show that high-quality home-based care can be delivered with consistency, excellence, and pride.
Her approach to leadership has always been grounded in a simple but powerful idea: providers must support one another. Schlimme has spoken openly about the dangers of division within the industry and the importance of helping others rise. In her view, grassroots organizing is not about politics for its own sake. It is about making sure that the voices of small providers are heard when laws, regulations, and reimbursement decisions are being made.
That message resonates in an industry where the stakes are high. Adult family homes serve some of the state’s most vulnerable adults, including seniors and individuals with complex care needs. Yet the people who operate these homes often work with limited margins, heavy compliance burdens, and staffing challenges that can make success difficult without strong networks of support. Schlimme has long argued that providers need more than encouragement, they need a seat at the table.
Her own career is an example of what that looks like in practice. Through leadership, advocacy, and hands-on work, she has helped elevate the profile of adult family homes and strengthen the sense of community among providers. She has also helped show that these homes are not small in importance, even if they are small in size. In fact, their size is part of what makes them so valuable: they offer personalized, relationship-based care in a setting that feels more like home than an institution.
Angel Heaven Estate reflects that model. It is a place where care is personal, standards are high, and leadership is visible in every detail. That kind of environment does not happen by chance. It is the result of years of commitment, discipline, and a belief that good care is both a responsibility and a calling.
For Schlimme, the work has always been bigger than one home. It is about strengthening an entire field of care through education, advocacy, and example. It is about showing lawmakers, families, and the public that adult family homes deserve recognition as a serious and essential part of Washington’s long-term care system. And it is about proving that when providers organize around shared purpose, they can help shape not just policy, but perception.
In that sense, Dorothy Schlimme’s story is also the story of grassroots leadership itself. It is the story of a provider who built with purpose, led with conviction, and never lost sight of the people at the center of the work. As Washington looks to the future of long-term care, voices like hers remain essential, not only for what they have built, but for the example they set.
Watch the full interview between Kenyan Ambassador David Kerich and Dorothy Schlimme below.
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