“I wouldn’t change a thing in my life right now. I’m truly blessed.”
Twice-honored Home Instead® Care Pro of the Month Glenda Shelton
Few people can ever make that statement no matter what point in life they’re reached. Glenda’s heartfelt words raise several questions: Why and how?
Glenda explained: “I’ve always wanted to help people when I could. I’ve spent the past 27-plus years doing that. It’s hard for me to say I have a favorite client. I’ve met so many special people and their families. They’ve all touched my heart in their own special ways, and my clients all leave me with very special memories.”
- “One client says I’m like a sister to her. We have a lot in common and share a lot of memories.”
- “One client says I make her feel safe.”
- “I laugh with them, and I feel sad when they are sad.”
- “I love to cheer them up and offer comfort.”
- “Some are anxious and waiting for my return.”
- “The small things mean the most to my clients.”
- “They all seem so grateful and appreciate the help.”
Glenda added: “I have two wonderful ladies for whom I’m caring now. They have very loving and supportive families. That makes a huge difference in their lives.”
Glenda knows firsthand how an attentive family can be impactful in a senior loved one’s life. “As a family caregiver for my mom, that experience has led me to know how my Home Instead clients are feeling and what they are dealing with,” said Glenda, whose mother, Nelda Jester, passed away May 6, 2025, at age 87. “The Home Instead staff was great when my mom passed, offering words of comfort and prayer.”
Glenda pointed out: “I’m blessed to work with Home Instead. I’ve met Ann and Van Lankford, our franchise co-owners. The Home Instead staff is wonderful, always supportive. They are there to answer questions in any way they can and help as needed.”
The staff at Home Instead of Mount Airy, North Carolina, said it was fitting that Glenda was honored as the franchise’s Care Pro of the Month for October 2025, nearly four years after she was chosen for the January 2022 award. The Home Instead staff said: “Glenda is an absolute saint and has family at the core of her heart. That means any family is important. Glenda embodies Home Instead’s guiding principles of ‘Build Trust, Take the Lead and Share Your Heart.’ ” Glenda acknowledged the award: “I feel honored to have been selected as Care Pro of the Month again. I’m humbled.”
Glenda’s journey to an award-winning senior-care career was the result of a drastic detour in her life. She had made a fair living while working at a hosiery mill in Winston-Salem for 18 years, but she yearned for more. “I wanted a job that had meaning to it and not just the same routine day after day,” Glenda recalled.
Glenda knew she had the compassionate heart to help others. “I helped my parents care for my two elderly grandmothers,” said Glenda, who later helped with her father after he was diagnosed with cancer. “We were blessed that we could keep everyone at home.”
In 1996, Glenda made her life-changing career move when she went to work as a CNA. Twenty-four years later, Glenda retired, but there was a void. She discovered it was too soon. “Retirement was great,” she explained, “but I missed caregiving and helping others. So, I served as a private-duty caregiver for an elderly man who passed away. Since I enjoy helping others, I wanted to find another job, but I really didn’t know where to start. I began to see advertisements on television for Home Instead and decided to apply for a job.”
That was the summer of 2022, when Glenda accepted a job offer at Home Instead. It came as no surprise seven months later that Glenda was honored as the office’s Care Pro of the Month.
Glenda and Home Instead are a perfect match. Referring to Glenda’s desire to seek another job after her retirement, Van said: “We find that many people have opted to ‘unretire,’ or return to work, perhaps in part-time roles, after their initial retirements. According to 2019 research conducted by the Home Instead corporate office, 53 percent of those soon to be retiring believed they were likely to return to work after retirement.”
Van added: “Home Instead’s ‘UnRetire Yourself’ program encourages those people to combine their passions and experience to identify fulfilling post-retirement employment, including professional caregiving. We are so happy Glenda chose this route, and it was a natural one for her because she had enjoyed her work as a CNA and private-duty caregiver. Seniors and their families have benefited from Glenda’s compassion and skills, and she feels good about what she’s doing. Glenda’s clients love her.”
One client, herself a former private-duty caregiver who shared the same spiritual faith with Glenda, especially touched Glenda’s heart. “Mrs. D. was always so thankful of the least thing. She would meet me at the door and tell me she was glad Home Instead sent me. I fixed her breakfast and helped her in her house. She was going blind, and I would read the Bible to her. We talked about her family. Her minister made sure she got to church. Just to see her smile and to be happy was one of the greatest blessings,” Glenda said.
