NCMDC loans $100K as Worcester homecare agency prepares to add 65 positions

PHOTO | Courtesy of North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce From left: Tracy Gagnon, manager of membership recruitment and engagement at the NCMCC; Bea Lea, portfolio manager at the NCMDC; Elizabeth Sergio of DivineTouch; Senator Michael Moore of Worcester; Grace Sterling, owner of DivineTouch; Camara Hilton, Sterling’s daughter; Rebecca Beaton, vice president of lending at the NCMDC; Ray Belanger, director of business development at NewVue Communities; and Maribel Cruz, economic development manager at the NCMDC

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By Isabel Tehan

The North Central Massachusetts Development Corp. loaned $100,000 to DivineTouch Home Health Care in Worcester to support the agency in becoming a certified homecare agency by the Massachusetts Division of Health Care Facility Licensure and Certification.

DivineTouch, founded by President and CEO Grace Sterling, who is a native of Jamaica, offers services including nursing, medication administration, Alzheimer’s and dementia care, and behavioral health management. The programming offers counseling from social workers, home care aides, and pastoral care.

The organization anticipates that growth in the coming years will add 19 salaried positions and 46 wage staff to the business, according to a Thursday press release from the North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce.

“As an expert in the home healthcare sector, I saw gaps in the system and realized there was a need for more home-based patient services in Worcester County. With the support provided by North Central Massachusetts Development Corporation, I will be able to build my business and help those in my community,” Sterling said in the press release.

As part of its relationship with the U.S. Small Business Administration, the Fitchburg-based NCMDC can provide loans up to $250,000 for working capital, equipment, real estate, and expansion. NCMDC is the lending division of the North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce.