Five-Time Care Pro Honoree Marcelles Is Nearing Her 20th Anniversary With Home Instead
At age 76, Marcelles Newton is still going strong.
The Home Instead® Care Professional insists the idea of retirement hasn’t cross her mind. She is perhaps the most frequently honored Care Pro in the Clawson franchise’s 25-year history with four Care Pro of the Month awards, including her June accolade. Marcelles also was the franchise’s 2005 Care Pro of the Year. She began working for Home Instead on Sept. 10, 2004.
“Nearly 20 years ago, when I saw a Home Instead advertisement, I said to myself, ‘That’s the job for me.’ It still is. I started at Home Instead with no prior training as a caregiver. When I was in the Girl Scouts, I earned a merit badge by volunteering at a nursing home. That’s when I first felt an attachment to helping seniors,” Marcelles recalled.
Eager to do her best, Marcelles always has focused on continuing education. After high school, Marcelles earned a medical office assistant certificate; at Home Instead she earned a Home Health Aide certificate. “I earned an associate of science degree at age 67. I earned my CNA at age 73 after working for years as a Care Professional,” Marcelles said.
Explaining her previous work experience, wonderful family situation and volunteerism, Marselles said: “I worked in doctors’ offices and for a national medical insurance company. Those jobs lasted for a couple of years each because I was having children. I have a total of six children – three boys and three girls. I also have 14 grandchildren and a set of twin great-grandsons. I also volunteer on one of my days off.”
Four years short of turning 80, Marcelles isn’t “coasting.” She leads the 24/7 Care Pro team for a client who will turn 100 on Sept. 28. “October will mark my fourth anniversary with the client. He wants me to be there for his birthday even though it falls on one of my two scheduled days off. I wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Marcelles said. “I love our teamwork as we assist him.”
Marcelles is responsible for most things at the client’s house, where she is affectionately called “The Boss.” Marcelles loves the challenges of coordinating care, right down to buying the groceries and such things as pillows and the client’s shoes. Her days off are Thursdays and Saturdays, and she primarily works day shifts. The client, a widower, is cognitive with just a few memory lapses. “He still reads the newspapers, checks his bills and takes phone calls. He has Parkinson’s disease, but his medication has limited his difficulties so far. He has a medical challenge with one hand, but has few other problems as he uses a walker.
“When he’s up and around, I am there for standby assists. When I began helping him, I started a routine of exercising to improve his health and ability to walk. He definitely got better, and there is no pushback. He is fine with exercising. I try to help him keep up with the exercising because he doesn’t want to go to a care community,” Marcelles said. “In addition to the exercises, I have him walk around the house once or twice a day. I always say, ‘Let’s do something.’ ”
Marcelles works with the client’s physical therapist to find the right exercises. “With the physical therapist’s parameters,” she said, “I investigate and research things for him to do that will help. I keep pointing out his progress to him. His doctor makes home visits, and I oversee the medication reminders. I receive the help of Home Instead’s nurse, who comes to the house and fills in the pill box containers. Actually, half of what he takes are vitamins. He drinks cranberry juice to try to keep the UTIs away. He knows what he needs to try to remain healthy.”
Marcelles pointed out that companionship is an important element of senior care. “I had a 102-year-old woman client, and she became forgetful at age 100. I had to listen to her phone conversations and repeat them to her. She did well socially until she turned 100. Then she isolated herself from her friends. I was a part of her team for seven years. Another male client lived to be 100. He wanted to stay in bed, but I cheered him up. Then he wanted to get up and become mobile again.”
Asked how much longer she wants to keep going, Marcelles said, “I just plan to continue, especially if my client is still around and doing well enough to have Home Instead assist him. I try to do the best I can to help my clients. I love to help make their lives a little better.”
All Home Instead Care Professionals are screened, trained and insured. For inquiries about employment, please call (248) 203-2273 or apply online. For further information about Home Instead, visit our website.
