Meet Erich Nickman, the CFO at AmanaCare.
Tell us a little about your business. – AmanaCare is a non-medical home care agency that serves seniors, adults, and children with disabilities. Our job is to assist our clients in their homes so that they can continue growing in a familiar place and keep the daily structure that they want. To that end, we perform tasks that range from homemaking to personal care, such as assistance with bathing.
Tell us a little about your family. – My wife Cynthia and I married in 2019 and we have been blessed with three children. Our oldest is two-years-old and our youngest two are fraternal twins, born in August of 2022. Cynthia worked as an elementary school teacher, but is now a stay-at-home mom. Her first language is Spanish and our goal is to raise our children bilingually. I am amazed every day at the home environment she creates for our family.
What do you see as one of the biggest turning points in your life? – In high school I converted to Christianity from atheism. This has impacted the way that I think and act in every facet of life. St. Augustine of Hippo summarized these two paths well in his work City of God. The City of Man being one in which the person pursues love of self to the point of forgetting God and neighbor, and The City of God being one in which the person pursues love of God and neighbor to the forgetting of self.
What is your favorite quote or the best piece of advice you’ve ever received? – The best advice I have received is, “In how one orders one’s life, there are two types of pain, the pain of discipline, or the pain of regret.” I have several duties that I am called to excel in; fatherhood, business leadership, friendship, personal growth, etc. I recall this advice when I am at the crossroads of choosing to perform my duty or choosing something easier or more convenient in the moment. I don’t always succeed but I know that this pattern of thinking has made me more disciplined, and has helped me enjoy performing my duties.
What is your favorite book or the last good book you read? – A Guide for the Perplexed by E. F. Schumacher. It gives a mental roadmap for thinking about the great ideas and contrasting worldviews. In a special way he dismantles the notion, which I held growing up, that the world is nothing more than material and chemical reactions.
What is your favorite movie? – It is a toss-up between Braveheart, The Count of Monte Cristo, and A Man for All Seasons. What these movies have in common is a main character who strives to uphold an ideal.
What is your favorite TV show? – Growing up I enjoyed the show Scrubs. It has quirky humor yet grapples with the realities of suffering and death.
What is your favorite local restaurant? – I have always appreciated both the food and atmosphere of Toast.
If you could have dinner with one famous person from the past or present, who would it be? – I greatly admire St. Thomas More, the Chancellor of England in the 1500s. A learned and principled man, he accepted death over betraying his conscience. I would appreciate learning what a day in his life consisted of and hearing his thoughts on our present-day matters.
If our readers would like to contact you, how should they do so? – amana-care.com; erich@amana-care.com.