May 19 is Personal Support Worker Day in Ontario. The Canadian Red Cross is the largest non-profit provider of Personal Support and Homemaking Services in the province. Red Cross CSWs provided more than 4 million hours of care to more than 29,000 clients in Ontario last year.
Because of the care and support of CSWs, so many people facing injury or illness are able to continue living independently in their own homes with comfort and dignity. Here are just three of our thousands of CSWs across Ontario who make a difference in their communities.
Sandra Burke – When she was a kid, Sandra dreamed of being a nurse. So, years later, when looking to re-enter the workforce after caring for her kids, an ad looking for Red Cross CSWs caught her eye. She fell in love with being a CSW and helping families, and 18 years later, she’s still at it in St. Catharines, ON.
What Sandra loves most about her job is the human interaction – in particular, hearing stories from her clients’ lives. For her, every day at work is like stepping into a page from a history book.
Andy Elliott - Andy found his calling at the tender age of 11; unfortunately it was due to a personal tragedy. He became the main caregiver of his sister, after a house fire left her severely injured. It was because of this that he realized he had a gift for helping others. Years later when deciding on a future career, he naturally chose the healthcare industry and received his Personal Support Worker (PSW) designation.
Last year, Andy was a finalist for the PSW of the Year Award from the Personal Support Network of Ontario (PSNO). He was one of three finalists chosen out of 15,000 PSWs from across Ontario.
Janet Osborne - For the past 18 years, Janet has worked with the Canadian Red Cross as a Community Support Worker (CSW). She currently lives in Kingston, ON.
She always goes the extra mile, providing compassionate care and support to her clients – even during their final moments. She once held one of her client’s hands as they passed away. Memories such as this motivate and inspire Janet to do her work.
Thank you to all our CSWs!