Rachel’s Song Resonates With Her Client
The words of CAREGiver of the Month Rachel Wines’ song resonated in the client’s home, where the widow of strong faith sang the chorus from a sheet she had requested from Rachel after first hearing her CAREGiver sing it.
“Oh Jesus was always there. He pulled me out of the mire and set my feet upon the rock. Now my life’s been changed and rearranged. I owe it all to you. Oh Jesus, was always there.
“There were times I didn’t know what to do. I felt that no one cared and that my life was bare. Then He found me and put His arms around me. He showed me that He cared and He was always there.”
Rachel entitled her original song “Jesus Was Always There.” Setting the stage for that scene about a year ago, Rachel recalled: “We talked about singing. I told her I sing in my church. I wrote the song, and she asked me to sing it. She loved it. She had me write the words, and she sang the chorus. I had never heard her sing. She keeps my sheet with the song lyrics in her Bible. You know where her heart is. She says the rosary every night before she goes to bed,” said Rachel, who has served the client for about two years on behalf of Home Instead® of Winchester.
On June 8, 2016, Rachel joined the award-winning Home Instead franchise that serves Northern Shenandoah Valley. Marilyn Stokes, the client care coordinator and office administrator, announced Rachel’s CAREGiver of the Month honor for January 2021.
Rachel has a strong faith and is a believer who listens closely to her clients and helps them celebrate their faith if they broach the subject. “I really like my job. My occupation aligns with my beliefs,” Rachel said. The Home Instead network’s core values are: “Honor God in all we do; Treat each other with dignity and respect; Encourage growth in ourselves and others; Build value in our service to others.”
Rachel’s faith-based client has 24/7 support from Home Instead. Rachel is the senior member of a solid, consistent four-CAREGiver team that is supported by fill-in CAREGivers from time to time. For her part, Rachel said: “Helping people is what I live for. It makes me feel good. Everyone has a gift. While experiencing life, I schedule everything else around work so I don’t miss a shift.”
With specificity, Rachel said: “My client is 96½ years old. Her husband has been gone 12 years, and she is alone. She does not have dementia. She is sharp and very intelligent. She has a sense of humor. Health-wise, she does pretty well. She gets around with her walker. She looks young and so radiant. She has clear eyes and good skin. She needs help with personal care, including bathing. I do cooking and cleaning.”
Rachel added: “She likes to send letters, and I help her. I address the letters and I mail them. She has told me a lot of stories, She had traveled to Paris, France, and a lot of other countries. She is a person of multiple talents who had a cooking show in Texas. She is fluent in French and was an English grammar teacher who is a Phi Beta Kappa. She is inspiring to me. She teaches me.”
Before Rachel joined Home Instead 4½ years ago, she worked as a fulltime private-duty caregiver who took care of a man. Rachel was with him for two years before he died in his sleep at age 69. “I was unemployed for a couple of days and was sitting on the couch thinking how I needed a job. I went online and found Home Instead. I also had seen the ‘Home Instead’ name on a pamphlet in a doctor’s office during a visit with my private-duty client,” said Rachel, who had taken care of her landlord’s mother after she graduated from high school. The landlord taught Rachel everything about the care of her mother.
After Rachel helped her landlord’s mother for about nine months, she went to nurse’s aide training, aced the class and passed the state exam on her first try in 2003. “It was something I wanted to do because I’ve always wanted to help people. I renew my CNA license every year,” said Rachel, who loves working for Home Instead. “The office is very polite and courteous. They are a very good company. They are very flexible. If they need me to work extra, I’ll try if it is possible. I do try to stay flexible to pick up a shift.”
Rachel also loves Home Instead for the compassion it showed her while her mother’s health declined as a result of kidney cancer. “I was working nights for Home Instead. I went to my mother’s house and took care of her. It was two months before Mom died. Home Instead understood when I could not come in,” Rachel recalled.
“Mom died in July 2018. In addition to cancer, she had many other health issues. The doctors didn’t want to operate on her, and she did not want chemo. ‘If it’s God’s time, I am ready,’ Mom said. She didn’t suffer because God gave her peace. Home Instead truly is a company that understands the challenges of caregiving. They gave me the time I needed. Home Instead is very caring, not only for its clients but also its employees.”
