It was the 1980s. Sue Williams was in her 20s and working as a Texas hospital CNA. Any uncertainty about her life’s journey became crystal clear one day. “When I came upon a patient who was continually moaning from pain, a wave of empathy surged through my heart. I told God, ‘I’ll be your servant to try to help these people,’ ” said Sue, recalling Isaiah’s answer to God in Isaiah 6-8 (“Here am I! Send me.”).
“I’ve been a caregiver my entire life. I don’t think I know how to do anything else. I’ve worked in every professional caregiving setting there is. In addition to working as a hospital CNA for five years, I’ve worked in a skilled nursing home, assisted living and memory care, and as a private-duty caregiver,” Sue explained. “For 15 years, I was tied to one family – serving two people at different times – as a private-duty caregiver. I first took care of the family’s mother. After she died, I took care of her husband. I still remain connected to the family.”
A bedrock basis for helping seniors and bonding with them is Sue’s faith-based beliefs. A resident of Cuero, Texas, she is a longtime member of Mt. Bethany Baptist Church in Thomaston, Texas. “It’s a mighty place of worship that is tucked into a tiny town. If you are driving on Highway 87 between Cuero and Victoria, and blink at the wrong time, you might miss Thomaston,” joked Sue, who knows the Cuero-to-Victoria road well.
On Sept. 10, 2021, Sue joined Home Instead® of Victoria, an award-winning franchise owned by Pietro Jordao and Dillon Rice. “A friend told me about Home Instead. I had not previously heard of them. I had contacted another in-home care agency before I tried Home Instead. I am glad I did. Everyone in the Home Instead office knows me and is friendly. The communication is good. When Home Instead calls me to help someone at the last moment, it’s hard for me to say no. I love the Home Instead staff and clients – and I love the clients’ stories,” Sue said.
Sue has her own unique story as a teenage family caregiver. “I received my first caregiving lessons by taking care of my grandmother,” Sue said. “I’ll never forget my first opportunity to provide personal care for her. I got scared because I thought something was wrong. Since I was 15 years old, I called for other family members. It turns out I had done nothing wrong. It was just a bit shocking for me that first time. It was the first of many experiences.”
Sue added: “Grandma was living in her own home, but for some medical reason, she just couldn’t walk any longer. I helped my mother with my grandmother’s care. Mom was not a professional caregiver, but she knew what to do. At that time, I also was helping with my grandfather’s care. He had a paralyzing arthritis. At this present time, all of my family have ‘gone home’ to be with our Lord except a younger sister.”
With Home Instead, Sue’s current regular client is in his late 70s and has dementia. A 24/7 client, he bonded with Sue in just six weeks despite his short-term memory challenges. “He responds well to me and is very friendly. He never acts out in anger,” Sue said.
“With his dementia, I remind him of a lot of things, just as though I am coaching him. There is no negative feedback or problems if I tell him gently that he has made a wrong choice. He has a hard time speaking, but he always tells me ‘thank you’ when I leave for the day. Sometimes he doesn’t remember me when I come in. I always identify myself so he doesn’t feel embarrassed if he has forgotten me. He smiles when he realizes who I am. I think he sometimes knows me by recognizing my face and voice.”
A senior-care professional who deftly keeps control with a velvet touch, Sue allows her client to do as many things by himself as he can safely do. “I promote his independence but all the while making sure he is safe. He lets me know when something goes wrong. He realizes from time to time that his memory fails him. It is a comfort to him to have someone there with him,” Sue said.
Working overnight, Sue remains flexible when the client’s sleep pattern goes off track. “Sometimes he’s already asleep at 8 when I come in. Sometimes he gets up at 10:30 or 11 and wants to watch TV. If it reaches 2 a.m., I turn off the TV and tell him it’s time to go to bed, and he will,” Sue said. “Once he’s in bed, he stays there unless he needs to use the bathroom, and he is cognitive about that. He might get confused and think morning has arrived, but I let him know he can go back to bed. For breakfast, he likes to fix his own, and I keep my eye on him.”
When Recruiting and Retention Coordinator Maegan Coldewey announced Sue had been honored as Care Pro of the Month, Maegan said Sue clearly displays Home Instead’s guiding principles of “Build Trust, Take the Lead and Share Your Heart.” The award brought smiles to Sue’s face. “I am so excited I was chosen for Care Professional of the Month. I am so glad to have the opportunity to serve my seniors,” she said.
At our award-winning Home Instead franchise, owned by Pietro Jordao and Dillon Rice, Care Professionals are screened, trained and insured. For inquiries about employment, please call (361) 237-1895 or apply online at https://www.homeinstead.com/location/781/home-care-jobs/ . For further information about Home Instead, visit our website at https://www.homeinstead.com/location/781/.
