“The joy of this job is that you have time to talk with your clients while you are caring for them.” – Maureen C., Firefly Caregiver
Tell us about your career and how you became a caregiver? I worked for fifty years as a nurse in hospitals, doctor’s offices, and nursing homes. I retired from nursing in 2017, but after taking some time off from work, I decided to find something part-time. I enjoy working with people and wanted to stay in the medical field, but I didn’t want to return to nursing, which had become more administrative and less hands-on over the years. I especially enjoy working with seniors and hearing their stories. This led me to home health care. I worked for a small home health care company before starting with Firefly. February was my two-year anniversary with Firefly. I like that they work around my schedule. I have one or two clients for a couple of hours each day. Tuesdays are my day off.
What advice would you offer to someone considering a job in home health care? As a nurse, I had someone say to me once that they wished someone would sit and talk with them for a while. It about broke my heart. The joy of this job is that you have time to talk with your clients while you are caring for them. Even while you are cleaning their house, you can continue to carry on a conversation. You need to have a heart for working with people to be a good caregiver.
Tell us about something you like to do: I don’t have a lot of time for things, but I love to sing. Music speaks to me. I was in my high school choir, then I was on the Praise Team at my church. For a time, I wasn’t able to commit to the team because I was working every night and couldn’t attend the practice sessions, but I’m happy to say I’ve recently started to practice with the team again.
Is there something you are looking forward to? I was married to my husband Larry for twenty-three years before he passed away. In 2000, we began a two-year program together at Rhema Bible College in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. We graduated from the program in 2002 and they are having a twenty-year reunion. I’m leaving this weekend to go back to Oklahoma and I’m really looking forward to it.
Tell us a little about one of your clients: Ron is a veteran who needs a treatment for his legs and feet daily. I set up the treatment for him and while the machine is doing its job, I vacuum or do other tasks around the house. We talk while I’m doing the work. He loves to talk and has an interesting life story.
Maureen’s client, Ron, had wonderful things to say about her: Bless her heart, she takes good care of me. She sets up the pump on my legs and then does the laundry, sweeps the floors, or whatever needs to be done that day. She is always trying to help and do what she can. My wife and I think a lot of her, she has a very caring heart.
