News Summary
Aegis Living has appointed Dirk Burghartz as its new President following the retirement of Sandra Preyale. Burghartz brings over 35 years of luxury hospitality expertise and aims to enhance operations, health technology, and culinary wellness across Aegis’s communities. His personal experiences have shaped his leadership approach, emphasizing compassion and excellence in assisted living. This leadership change comes as Aegis seeks to improve life quality for its residents and innovate within the sector.
Redmond, WA – Aegis Living, a national leader in assisted living and memory care, has appointed Dirk Burghartz as its new President, effective July 7, 2025. The significant leadership change follows the retirement of Sandra Preyale, who held the position for seven years. Burghartz is stepping into the role as the company aims to reimagine and innovate within the assisted living sector.
Dirk Burghartz brings over 35 years of luxury hospitality expertise to Aegis Living, primarily garnered during his tenure with Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts. He has a diverse background that includes being the President of Arcis Golf, where he drove operations growth from $300 million to $500 million by effectively leading teams of over 6,000 employees.
In his previous role as Executive Vice President of Operations for LIFE Properties International, Burghartz focused on private club communities, further enhancing his track record in high-end service management. His appointment follows a rigorous selection process in which he was chosen from more than 70 candidates for his unique blend of leadership capabilities, characterized by head, heart, and guts.
At Aegis Living, Burghartz will oversee operations and team development across 39 existing communities and several more scheduled for development. His focus will be on enhancing aspects of health technology, culinary wellness, and memory care design, all essential pillars of modern assisted living.
One of the key objectives for Burghartz will be to cultivate an organizational culture that fosters unity among staff around a shared vision of compassion and excellence. He has expressed enthusiasm for merging his extensive hospitality experience with the specific needs of the assisted living industry. To facilitate this, Burghartz plans to spend his initial months within Aegis communities to learn directly from the staff providing care.
Burghartz’s personal experiences have also shaped his approach. He has witnessed the impact of assisted living firsthand as both of his parents moved into a facility in Germany. His family history inspires him to bring genuine compassion into his new role at Aegis Living.
The search for a new president came at a vital time for Aegis Living, which has recently received accolades from Newsweek for its exceptional workplace environment and for its support of parents and families in 2024 and 2025. The company is committed to improving life quality for its residents, and the leadership of Burghartz signals a promising step forward as it seeks to innovate within this essential sector.
As Burghartz and his wife, Kelly, prepare to relocate from Dallas to the Pacific Northwest, they are eager to become ingrained in the community that Aegis Living serves. The transition in leadership marks a pivotal moment for the organization as it looks to enhance its services while maintaining its reputation as a leading provider of assisted living and memory care across the nation.
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Additional Resources
- Le Lézard
- Wikipedia: Assisted Living
- Senior Housing News
- Google Search: Assisted Living
- McKnight’s Senior Living
- Google Scholar: Assisted Living Innovation
- PR Newswire
- Encyclopedia Britannica: Assisted Living
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