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Front Row: 1st Generation Irene and Joe Waggoner
Back Row: 2nd Generation Dan and Donna Serven
3rd Generation Denise (Serven) and Dean Tlustos
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Three generations of family members have operated Ozark Riverview Manor, but the work of taking care of people who need long term care began long before.
In 1917, the Christian County Nursing Home was founded on West Hall Street in Ozark. It's purpose was to take care of people who had no other place to go, no one else to help provide long term care. Most people in the area referred to it as the "County Poor Farm" as the building was owned by Christian County.
In the late 1960's, Joe Waggoner, a native of nearby Chadwick, would visit his mother and grandmother, who were both residents at the Christian County Nursing Home. By that time, the business was run by Homer and Jewel Bilyeu. Homer passed away in 1969, and Jewel asked Joe and his wife Irene Waggoner to make an offer to purchase the business when they were visiting from Detroit in 1970. The next day, an offer was made, and Jewel accepted. Not long after, the Waggoners moved from Michigan to Ozark and took over operation of the nursing home.
To aid in running the nursing home, Joe and Irene’s daughter Donna Serven and her husband Dan moved from Michigan to Ozark in 1975. They brought with them their two small children, Doug and Denise. Dan helped do whatever needed to be done in the nursing home.
In 1980, Joe and Irene sold the business to Dan and Donna, who quickly saw that the physical structure of the building was not going to be adequate in the future. In the mid-1980’s, they began to sense God leading them to make plans for a new building, and it wasn’t until 1991 that a new building was built and the business renamed to Ozark Riverview Manor.
A new level of care was added in 1995. Riverview Residential Place made it possible in Ozark for people to live in a home-like setting while having 24-hour a day protective oversight.
In 2003, Dan and Donna’s daughter Denise Tlustos, along with her husband Dean, moved to Ozark to be a part of the family business themselves. Currently, Denise works as a Registered Nurse and Dean as Assistant Administrator.