LOUISVILLE, KY (WAVE) - A for-profit company in Louisville is doing something a little different. It is bringing spirituality into the workplace.
At Signature Healthcare there is a prayer circle in the morning, a prayer room in the building and a company-wide prayer chain with 600 people. Bible verses are written on the walls and yoga is offered during lunch hour.
The company's founder, Joe Steier, came up with the concept after his son Luke was born.
Luke was born 12 weeks early, weighting 3 lbs, 2 oz. He also had a level 3 brain bleed out of 4.
“There's this initial feeling when you realize you're alone and can't handle it and this incredible humanity embraces you,” Steier said. "You start realizing you're not alone. You start seeing power of all these people Baptist leaders, Jewish leaders, different religions, praying with you and your family. Coming together in your darkest hour."
He said those prayers helped him and his family get through and Luke, who is now 9, healed miraculously.
Steier now goes to the nursing homes owned by his father's company and prays with the residents.
He took it further in the nursing homes, adding chaplains and spiritual programs, then added programs in the corporate office.
"At the end of the day people are looking for a more meaningful workplace. I think especially healthcare where so difficult these days,” Steier said.
Dianne Timmering, a vice president of spirituality, is a part of Steier's staff.
She said offering all of the programs to the employees, “Edifies them. It's encouraging. Uplifting.”
The company also has a compassion fund employees donate to. So far $1.1 million has been raised to help more than 700 families.
One of the people the fund helped was Tasha Dean, who received $2,300 to help her aunt who has stage four cancer.
"She's very grateful,” Dean, who works in collections, said of her aunt. “Words can't express how much everyone is grateful for everything."
Steier and Timmering co-authored a book about spirituality and the company is getting attention for what they've done to the workplace.
"I think we live in a very noisy world, especially in corporate world. Where corporate world says have to live spiritual skin at the door,” Timmering said.
Now many people have a different philosophy, all because of an amazing little boy.
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