Meet Us

Introducing the idea and the drive behind Tree of Life’s mission, Tina Valerius. Tina resides with her husband Tom in St. Joseph, MN. Together they have two children. Josh, who is a pharmacist, resides with his wife Kelly and two dogs (Emmet and Scout) in Missoula, MT, and Jaden, who is a massage therapist, resides with her dog (Tucker) in Winona, MN. It is no surprise that one child took to the medical field and the other took a more holistic approach as Tina likes to bring both sides of the medical spectrum together to assist people in their health journey. Tina is a Licensed Practical nurse, Certified Food Manager, Licensed Assisted Living Director, Certified Quality Manager, and is working on her Death Doula certificate. When she is not learning or trying new things, she loves to spend time with her husband and sleep! She loves to travel to visit her children and tries to get to Montana twice a year. 

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Krista Kalthoff is our Registered Nurse and Director of Nursing. Krista grew up in Albany where she spent most of her adolescence on the golf course with her family. Currently she resides in Freeport with her husband Joel and 3 boys: Ace (10), Lincoln (7) and baby Miles. Nursing wasn’t her first career. After high school, Krista studied Graphic Design at SCSU and worked in the field for 7 years before pursuing her degree in Nursing. She worked her way through nursing school as a CNA in assisted living and as an LPN in long-term care while obtaining her degree as a Registered Nurse making it easy for her to understand all areas of patient care. Krista loves working at the Tree of Life because it feels like home. The residents and their families are an extension of her own. In her free time, Krista enjoys spending time in the sun, shopping, traveling with her family, camping and exploring new activities.

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Megan Primus is our Activity Director who has over 20 years of experience.  Megan has a bachelors degree in Theater which brings lots of creativity to our program.  Megan has been traveling the states making her home at RV parks over the last four years.  She has now decided to make roots in Minnesota once a again.  Megan and her husband Sean live in St Joseph.  In her free time Megan loves to bake, cook, play trivia, acting, and visit coffee shops!