Tinsell Savors Care Pro-Client Friendship: ‘It a Perfect Match’
BFFs … best friends forever? That characterizes the feel of the warm relationship between Home Instead® Care Professional of the Month Tinsell Fink and her client, a close connection that has developed in less than a year’s time.
“The favorite element of my job is my client,” said Tinsell, who joined the award-winning Home Instead franchise in Mount Airy, North Carolina, in January 2024. “She has become one of my best friends. We are just like the perfect match. She is a very independent lady, so I really don’t like to be called her ‘caretaker.’ I think we take care of each other.”
Tinsell added: “Among my favorite things is that we enjoy talking about our day when I first arrive. We have lots of laughs as we try to answer the questions on the ‘Jeopardy!’ television game show. But she is the one who answers most of the ‘Jeopardy!’ questions because I cannot keep up with her. Sometimes we just turn the TV off and talk. We know a lot of the same people in our community, and we always say we are going to figure out one day that we are kin.”
Tinsell always has had a heart for people – young or old – since she can remember. “When I was young, my grandmother lived with us for some of the time. I would help my mother take care of her at times,” Tinsell said, recalling her earliest role as a family caregiver.
Tinsell works full time as a bookkeeper at a school and assists seniors on behalf of Home Instead in a secondary job. Detailing her route to the 13-year-old Home Instead franchise started by co-owners Van and Ann Lankford, Tinsell said: “My husband and I have been empty nesters for a while. Before I joined Home Instead, I worked at a children’s center in a part-time job in the evenings, so I was a caregiver for a different age group. That job was no longer needed, so I applied with Home Instead.”
Tinsell almost immediately knew she’d found an inviting home with her new part-time job. “When I went in for an interview with Home Instead, everyone was so friendly and happy. I knew that was where I would like to work. Luckily, I received a call back that they had an opening that suited my hours perfectly,” Tinsell said, pointing out the scheduling flexibility that is an employee hallmark of Home Instead franchises.
The Home Instead staff is thrilled to have Tinsell on its Care Pro team. Speaking in one voice, staff members said: “Tinsell has been a wonderful addition to Home Instead. To be considered for Care Pro of the Month status, an employee has shown she has gone above and beyond the call of duty. Empathy and compassion are taken into account for the award, as well as skill and wisdom for dealing with challenging situations. Tinsell embodies Home Instead’s guiding principles of ‘Build Trust, Take the Lead and Share Your Heart.’ ”
The staff added: “For Tinsell, touching lives impacts her soul, whether she is providing physical help such as light housekeeping, meal preparation, medication reminders or personal care or if she is offering emotional support. Focusing on our unique Home Instead training, processes and procedures of successful caregiving also helped Tinsell achieve Care Pro of the Month status.”
Tinsell loves being a part of the Care Pro team at the Surry County franchise, a member of a network comprised of Home Instead, Inc. and its parent company, Honor. With the world’s largest home-care network and the most advanced care platform, Honor and Home Instead are revolutionizing care for older adults and their families. Combined, the network has more than 100,000 Care Pros in 13 countries and meets the growing needs of millions of older adults and their families worldwide.
