Sandy Sees God’s Calling in Her Pursuit of CAREGiver Job
Welcome to Home Instead® of Ocala’s CAREGiver Spotlight. Each month, one of our amazing CAREGivers will be randomly selected to share their story with their peers — YOU. We know you will enjoy reading and learning more about Sandy.
Sandy has an idea why she became a CAREGiver for the award-winning Home Instead office that serves Marion County, including Ocala, Silver Springs, Belleview and Summerfield. Summing it up, Sandy said: “It’s bizarre how I got to Home Instead. It was God talking to me. God said He was not letting me off the hook as he continued to send subtle signs. I do think God talks to us, and He put a series of thoughts in my head in this instance.”
Sandy and a girlfriend went to Sunday breakfast after attending church as they usually do. While waiting to be seated at the restaurant, an unusual thought came to Sandy to take one of the free coffee newspapers that are displayed at the counter. That’s not something she usually does. Later that day, she went through the newspaper and saw a Home Instead advertisement. Sandy said to herself, “I couldn’t do that.” Then she saw that no medical background was required.
So, Sandy called Home Instead the next day. “I needed to apply online, but I didn’t have a computer, and I thought, ‘That’s the end of that.’ But my next-door neighbor showed me what to do on her computer. But I was 71 at the time, and I thought my age would work against me as far as getting a job,” she said. One of Sandy’s friends told her, “You have more energy than someone who is 50.” A Home Instead staff member later told Sandy they have CAREGivers who are older than she is. In fact, franchise owners Jim and Mary Samuelson are proud to have highly capable and compassionate seniors, such as Sandy, serving other seniors who need the help.
“Jim and Mary Samuelson are two of the nicest people I’ve ever met. They care about their employees. I can be on the phone with Mary for over an hour, chatting like girlfriends. I was comfortable from the beginning with Home Instead. Although I had never worked in professional senior care, I spent more than three decades as a hairdresser and enjoyed working with seniors. The training was helpful, especially with use of the equipment,” Sandy said.
“Most of the caregiving is common sense. For instance, unless there is a safety issue, I don’t follow the clients around unless they request it. Many have an independent mind-set. I treat the clients the way I’d want to be treated. Most of my caregiving comes naturally.”
When Sandy thinks of recent family caregiving and long-ago interaction with a senior loved one as a girl who was growing up in Michigan, she thinks of her mother and great-grandmother.
“Mom was 82 and was in great health when we moved her to Florida. As far as cooking and cleaning went, she did things on her own while I visited every day. She died unexpectedly in 2003, six months after my husband suffered a massive heart attack and died. I was still working as a hairdresser. I came to her door one morning to have coffee with her, investigated why she didn’t greet me and found she had passed away. I had been with her just the night before,” Sandy explained. “So, I was rocked with a double tragedy. It was crushing and took me time to absorb what had happened. My husband and I had just moved from South Carolina to Florida in 2002.”
Those were sad days for Sandy, but she has fond memories of her great-grandmother, perhaps the reason she’s always been comfortable around seniors. “I was probably 7 or 8 years old when I started spending time with my great-grandmother, and we prayed and read Scripture. I’d spend whole weekends with my great-grandmother. It was God’s way of showing me older people who were wise, patient and loving,” Sandy recalled.
“We played cards. She exercised and did pushups. I didn’t help her with anything. She was the best cook ever and taught me how to cook. She had a farm, and she pulled carrots and other vegetables that she prepared. We also husked corn, and picked strawberries and blueberries. Everything we ate was something we took out of her garden. She raised chickens, would kill one and cook it. She lived a three-hour drive from my home. I once spent a summer month there.”
Sandy was married about the same time her great-grandmother died, having lived into her 90s. Among the places where they lived, Sandy and her husband spent 16 years in Hawaii. “A Hawaiian friend retired and tried part time work with Home Instead, which is where I first heard of Home Instead. I spent 34 years as a hairdresser, and JC Penny found a job for me at one of their salons wherever we moved. Other hairdressers were impatient with seniors, and they gave me the older people. I was patient with seniors. Everyone needs to treat seniors with respect,” she said.
At age 78, Sandy said: “I will do this job as long as I can. I am in great health and exercise regularly. I don’t take any medications, and I take vitamins. I joke that I will work until I need a CAREGiver.”
All Home Instead CAREGivers are screened, trained, bonded and insured. For inquiries about employment, please call (352) 622-6447 or apply online. For further information about Home Instead, visit our website.
