Kim’s Clients ‘Are Like Family’
CAREGiver℠ of the Month Kim Barbee is not embarrassed to say she cried one day during a shift.
It had been several weeks, maybe more, since one of her clients had been out of her living room. Then Kim wheeled the client out to her big closed-in porch, where she could see her cats. “I picked up one of the cats and brought it to her to hold in her wheelchair. Seeing her joy made me cry. Her condition has gotten better since winter,” said Kim, who serves seniors on behalf of her award-winning Home Instead® of Midland-Odessa that is owned by Lorena Garza Shensky and her husband, William Shensky.
Kim explained: “The client has leg difficulties. She and her husband, also a client, didn’t go anywhere over the winter but their living room. There are various reasons, including winter weather, COVID-19, immobility, and safety and health. The challenges are many. I try to get them outside of their home for fresh air. They are in their 80s, and they are like my parents. I am so close to them. The wife is the same age my mom would have been. Despite her dementia, the wife knows me, and we are very connected. Her husband can be tough, but I understand him. They ask for me. I love them to pieces.”
Imelda Hawkins, the Home Instead franchise’s assistant administrator as well at its recruitment and engagement coordinator, described Kim as “a CAREGiver hero” when Imelda announced Kim had been selected as March CAREGiver of the Month. “I am proud to honor Kim,” she said. “I recently visited a client who in the beginning was resistant to care, and he told me, ‘Kim was a godsend to my wife and me. Kim anticipates our needs without us having to say a word.’ If the qualities of humbleness, caring and compassion had a face, to me, it would be Kim’s. Kim joined our franchise Oct. 29, 2020, and since that time, she has overwhelmingly won the hearts of the seniors for whom she cares.”
Imelda added: “When Kim is not serving as a Home Instead CAREGiver, she manages quite well as a full-time family caregiver for her granddaughter. Kim enjoys reading, scrapbooking and painting. Thank you, Kim, for all you do to ensure that our seniors maintain their independence while remaining in their homes. You are a CAREGiver hero!”
Kim’s career and background have been marked by her compassion and empathy. She worked as a CNA for about 12 years in a Tennessee nursing home. Kim also worked with mentally challenged residents in a six-person home. “Being a CNA in a nursing home is so hard. This work is so different than that of a CNA. It almost feels as if I am not going to a job but instead going to help friends and family. Being a Home Instead CAREGiver feels comfortable. I grow attached to my clients. In fact, I love my clients and am crazy for them.”
Kim moved from Tennessee to Texas 10 years ago, lived in Odessa for three years and now resides in Midland. She is a family caregiver, but no longer for elderly family members. Those days have come and gone. “My dad became ill in Tennessee and died there. We moved my mother here to Texas with us. She died in her house in Texas. Then my brother got brain cancer. I brought him here, and he died three years ago. For a while, I took care of four grandchildren. Now, we take care of a 15-year-old granddaughter as our family member. She wants to be in the medical field, possibly a psychiatrist,” Kim explained.
A good friend, October 2020 CAREGiver of the Month Verna Clark, recommended Home Instead to Kim, and the job has been a good fit. “I love the Home Instead office people. They are very caring and generous. They really show their appreciation for the CAREGivers. I truly love them. They do small things that turn out to be big to show their appreciation,” Kim said.
Seeing her clients’ physical and emotional improvement is a reward in itself, Kim said while thinking of her first Home Instead client. The 84-year-old woman had suffered a broken arm, and she asked Home Instead to help her during her three-month recovery. “We got along really well. We baked a lot because she liked to bake. It was fun. I came home with banana bread or some other delicacy after some shifts with her. After she recovered sufficiently enough, she didn’t need a CAREGiver. Her independence had returned with her healing, and that was great news. She is a very strong, independent woman. I miss her,” Kim said.
Kim also has been helping an Alzheimer’s client, a woman for three months. “Her sister is a wonderful family caregiver who needs help. I provide respite for her sister and give her time to shop for groceries and go to church. They are very good Christian people,” Kim said. “Our routine is shower, breakfast, puzzle, so I help with showering and have no problems. The puzzle is good for her brain. Like the other clients, it feels great to lend a helping hand.”
Kim believes she’ll stay with Home Instead until she needs a helping hand. “I am 61, and I want to be a Home Instead CAREGiver until I can’t do this anymore.”
All Home Instead CAREGivers are screened, trained, bonded and insured. For inquiries about employment, please call (432) 689-4663 or apply online. For further information about Home Instead, visit our website.
