It has been 2½ years since Alise Trujillo was first selected in March 2021 as a Care Professional of the Month at owner Michael Lammers’ award-winning Home Instead® franchise of Boulder, Broomfield and northwest Adams Counties based in Louisville, Colorado. Now she is a two-time honoree.
In some ways, not much has changed for Alise, who was selected as the office’s Care Pro of the Month for September 2023. Alise’s consistent, compassionate and highly skilled work hasn’t deviated one inch from her firmly dedicated trajectory that began in March 2020 when she joined Home Instead. But in other ways, Alise’s life has undergone a major transformation.
“In January 2022,” Alise said, “I started dating a man named Sergio who I later found out was perfect for me in every facet. He has been deployed since December 2022, and he will be home in October 2023! I just couldn’t be happier to be reunited with the love of my life. It has been a very long 10 months without him by my side, especially enduring the sadness of our profession.”
Unfortunately, Alise is about to lose a client. “I am very fond of this client. I have been working in the client’s home for over a year, and it has been terribly sad to watch the family endure the beginning of the ending stages of their loved one’s life,” Alise said. Recruitment and Engagement Coordinator Brenda Munro said: “Alise is working with one of our highest needs clients and is an integral part of the team.”
Painting a big-picture perspective of Alise’s Home Instead career, Brenda agreed with her predecessor, Rianne Matthews, who earlier had noted: “Alise is positive, professional and poised. She demonstrates excellence both in her direct care to her clients and in her leadership within the care team. We are very proud of her! Her statements about what she loves about being a Care Pro illustrate a lot about her heart and her character.”
Alise joined Home Instead just as the deadly COVID-19 pandemic was gaining momentum in the United States. “It was a time when there was a higher number of residents leaving facilities and moving into homes of their loved ones for safety reasons,” Alise recalled. “I decided to really dive into this Home Instead position because I felt the importance of seniors needing assistance. Among the ones who remained in facilities, there was the sadness of such isolation. Overall, I was so appreciative of this opportunity to work with seniors hands-on and gain a better perspective on what it means to genuinely care for someone who is not your own.”
Alise learned at an early age what it meant to come alongside a senior. When nearly every other 14-year-old girl was enjoying the summer at a shopping mall, swimming pool or hiking and biking trail, Alise experienced the most challenging summer of her life in 2013. “Yes, I’ll admit it was,” Alise recalled, “but it taught me so many lessons in that short span of three months.” She was referring to her help with the hospice care of her terminally ill grandfather, who was suffering from various forms of cancer.
“My mother and I were the overnight team for my grandfather’s home hospice care. I had no other responsibilities. I had taken care of many ill family members in the past,” Alise said, “but that was the most impactful memory I have. I provided the kind of care that ensured my grandfather was as comfortable as possible and that he had everything he needed in a short arm’s reach when he eventually was no longer able to move.”
Alise added: “I learned about what the end of a true love story looked like, and I learned about the impact the nurses and other professional care team members have with their smiling faces and bright attitudes. I also learned what pain my parents endured while they were losing a parent. Most important, I learned what it was like to lose someone I loved so deeply. I watched what felt like an entire lifetime vanish before my eyes, and it changed my life forever. I grew to realize how precious each moment is and how important it is to celebrate life as much as possible because in the moments before death, you will look back and reflect on the life you’ve lived.”
Alise had heard about Home Instead through a friend. Alise’s friend had worked for Home Instead and spoke highly of the company and the job. Alise is happy to serve her Home Instead clients during many different kinds of days, which come with changing moods, likes and dislikes. “That has allowed me to gain a deeper insight for who our clients are as a whole. As a result, I am able to see things they’ve done throughout their lifetimes, such as marriages and having families, careers, college paths and traveling, and learning about their favorite things. By that, I mean favorite books, foods, colors and everything else,” Alise said.
Alise is interested in pursuing her CNA credentials before attending nursing school. “I am very thankful for this opportunity to be noticed in my current position. I am honored and humbled. I am very excited looking into the future. I will do anything to support Sergio and hopefully one day we will have a family to share,” she said.
All Home Instead Care Professionals are screened, trained and insured. For inquiries about employment, please call (720) 890-0184 or apply online. For further information about Home Instead, visit our website.
