Corinne Wants to Help Others as She Helped Her Mother
Welcome to Home Instead® of Ocala’s CAREGiver Spotlight. Each month, one of our amazing CAREGivers will be randomly selected to share their story with their peers — YOU. We know you will enjoy reading and learning more about Corinne.
Nearly 4½ years after Corinne’s mother passed away in November 2015, Corinne saw a home-health TV commercial that tugged at her heart strings.
“It had a profound effect on me. I thought about what my mom would say several times a day, ‘Where would I be right now if it weren’t for you? Thank you!’ Seeing the commercial, I knew I had to help others who didn’t have family or friends close by to assist with everyday needs,” said Corinne, who had moved her mother into her home for her last 6½ years. Physical changes had affected her mother’s independence, and she feared she’d be displaced from a home setting.
Acting on what she had seen in the commercial, Corinne researched various Ocala-area home-health agencies. “Home Instead happened to pop up on Facebook, saying it was hiring. I filled out an application on the spot, and I was interviewed and hired immediately,” said Corinne, who started in April 2020 at the Home Instead office that serves Marion County, including Ocala, Silver Springs, Belleview and Summerfield. Jim and Mary Samuelson have owned the award-winning franchise for more than 15 years.
“It’s my pleasure to help keep others at home by providing the services I did for my mother. That help includes getting clients groomed and dressed for the day, taking them to appointments, preparing meals, running errands, providing companionship and more.” Corinne said. “One gentleman for whom I care is originally from Italy. When I make him a home cooked dinner native to his homeland, he will often tell his little dog, in his Italian accent, ‘Kelly, I feel like I’m back in Italy!’ Making the client happy is what it is all about!”
She added: “The one-on-one interaction and the psychological-emotional element are the aspects of my job I like most. Since physical and mental limitations can become more frustrating or depressing for seniors as time goes on, my Master of Science degree in psychology comes in handy. I’m often in a position to help calm the clients’ minds by putting into perspective why they feel the way they do. When my words click, my input is appreciated, which I find extremely gratifying.”
Interested in mental-health counseling, Corinne finished her master’s degree in 2017. She had started at Webster University in Ocala, but her mother was sick, so Corinne stopped classes after one month. She decided to earn the Master of Science degree in psychology online with Walden University. Before the master’s degree, Corinne already had earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology at the University of Florida in Gainesville.
Corinne’s education has been beneficial in professional and volunteer positions. Boiling down how she uses her degrees to an essence, Corinne simply said: “I offer reassurance.”
In addition to working for Home Instead, Corinne is a patient support volunteer at Hospice of Marion County, Inc., an organization she joined July 1, 2019. “I started in ‘patient care,’ mainly respite for family caregivers. It is another reason why I went to Home Instead. I wanted to provide more ‘hands-on help,’ ” Corinne said. “Since October 2019, I have been involved with bereavement for teens, serving one evening a week. For the most part, I am a greeter, but I establish friendly and compassionate relationships with the bereaved teens and their families. Some teens have talked with me before sessions about personal matters.”
In providing emotional support as a CAREGiver, Corinne assisted a 96-year-old dementia client for four months. Corinne explained: “She was in and out of reality. On some days at 4 p.m., she’d go into the bathroom, began to cry and ask, ‘What is happening to me? Why am I like this?’ Corinne would calm the client, speak in low tones and tell her, “This is the aging process.” Corinne added: “She was frustrated when she was able to reflect on the things she could no longer do. She lived on a golf course and couldn’t golf any longer. She couldn’t drive.”
A state of low spirits is not confined to clients. With the client’s decline, Corinne experienced a short season of sorrow and introspection. “My client went to the hospital one day and then into hospice. I wasn’t surprised, but I was very sad. They tell you, ‘Try not to get too attached to your clients, because one day you’ll lose them,’ but it’s hard not to get attached to your clients. Then you process your own grief in ways that are not unlike those when you lose a parent,” Corinne said.
Sadly, Corinne and her husband suffered the recent loss of her husband’s 80-year-old father, who lived 4½ hours away in Coral Springs.
“He had been hanging in there,” Corinne said. “He was a fighter who had undergone chemotherapy, ended up hospitalized and went to hospice. We’re processing our grief, offering emotional support to his family members. This is not unlike what some of the families of my Home Instead clients have faced. I’m glad I am there not only for my family at this difficult time but also for Home Instead clients and their families. These challenges are not easy ones.”
All Home Instead CAREGivers are screened, trained, bonded and insured. For inquiries about employment, please call (352) 622-6447 or apply online. For further information about Home Instead, visit our website.
