Honoree Kim: ‘I Am Thankful God Led Me to Home Instead’
For Kim Hawks, November 2024 was a dark month. She was laid off from her accounts-receivable position after 24 years with the same manufacturing company. But a blessing was coming just around the corner in 2025. Kim joined Home Instead® of Mount Airy, North Carolina, two months into the New Year, becoming a Personal Care Aide on Feb. 25. Five months later, Kim was honored as the Home Instead franchise’s Care Professional of the Month.
One Home Instead staff member said: “Kim loves what she is doing and is great at it.”
Kim pointed out the advantages of working for Van and Ann Lankford’s award-winning Home Instead franchise: “Overall, everything is good. I can call the office at any time if I have questions or concerns. It’s a wonderful office, including Cindy, Kim, Angela, Sharon and everyone else. They are great, such a blessing. I am thankful God led me to them. They are like a good family. Everyone has a great big heart.”
The good vibes have continued with Kim’s clients. Her heart swelled when she heard her current client say: “Kim, I can tell you anything.” That comment didn’t come long after Kim began assisting the 89-year-old client in June. Kim recalled: “We bonded on the first day; we really hit it off right away. She was excited when I arrived for the first time. Before I left, she wanted to know when I would come back. That makes you feel good.”
Kim assists the widow on weekdays. She fills several roles, including friend, personal care assistant, de facto physical therapist and cheerleader. The client is trying to bounce back from a major medical challenge while still mourning the loss of her late husband after his death several years ago. “She talks about him often. They had been married for more than 60 years,” Kim said.
“My client’s medical challenge kept her out of her home for 45 days, time spent in a hospital and at a rehabilitation facility. She gets up at 7:10 a.m., and we’re together from that time until I leave. I help her with walking and exercises. I also help with personal care, such as dressing and bathing,” Kim explained. “She does exercises each day that are prescribed by her physical therapist. I also help her walk around inside her house every two hours with her walker.”
Kim added: “Our goal – including that of her loving, supportive family – is to get her to want to go outside the home. When she is physically and emotionally ready, there is a nice, flat area on which to walk outside her house to the mailbox and back. She loves the glimpses of her outside world. From the windows in her home that adjoins a golf course, she watches the birds and the golfers. I want her to reach the goal, but it might take a little while longer.”
With the goal in mind, Kim has served as a cheerleader. “I keep her motivated in a friendly way because she needs motivation every day. I am a cheerleader. We push, push, push,” Kim said with a smile. “She eats well and has a good appetite. I am always encouraging her to drink water. It’s easy for her to have one cup of coffee and half a glass of orange juice to start the day, but it’s harder to get her to drink water as the day goes on. That is not uncommon for seniors.”
Kim is part of a team caregiving effort. “There’s a lot of love in her family. A daughter lives in Mount Airy and a son lives in Winston-Salem. He’s always checking on his mother. Her daughter visits almost every day, and she brings my client’s 2-year-old great-grandchild for a visit once a week. I am very impressed with her family because they understand the depressed moods and low points of bouncing back. We strive to cheer her up. Unfortunately, some seniors have children who never visit. There are reasons, such as distance and demanding jobs. It seems some seniors are often by themselves,” Kim offered.
Kim grew up in a tightly knit family that believed in helping its seniors. “I was a family caregiver as early as age 13 or 14. My sisters joined in as we took care of our grandparents, particularly my grandfather, who had cancer. I was very comfortable with my grandparents. We were very close. Three of my four sisters have healthcare jobs,” Kim explained. “I also have served as a family caregiver for my mom and dad and another elderly person who I knew well.”
It takes a special person to work with the elderly. “Professional senior care is not for everyone. You must care. By that, I mean you need a beautiful heart, and an understanding and empathy for what the seniors are feeling. You must have patience and show a lot of love. Some seniors cry. They are going through changes and are confronted with the challenges they have never faced. It’s up to us to be positive influences and show them God’s love,” she said.
