Edith Helmke

I've volunteered as a co-director of our community youth program which teaches faith to children on Wednesday nights from September-May. In this position we work between our area supporting churches (4), our leadership team (5-10), staffers (20+), and our youth (55-65).

In this role I have assisted in writing and implementing strong policies and background checks, and a third party training program in order to protect our children.

I have added a meal to our programming time in light of concerns over food insecurity.

I've worked cooperatively with many personalities and organizations to move strongly in one direction.

This program is supported financially by area churches, and with that comes a responsibility to work with our treasurer to adhere to our budget, and stay accountable to those who financially support us.

As a program we interact with the community whenever we get the chance, be it a hay maze and hotly contested chili contest open to everyone, a derby car race, or bringing in area organizations such as Sukup's Safety Homes, the local fire department, or even a donkey! We want to teach our youth from an early age that there are a myriad of ways in which they can serve the world around them.

I provided private in-home health care services alongside other contractors. In this role I frequently needed to prioritize urgent needs, keep accurate records, maintain flexibility, working both independently and cooperatively, and show a willingness to provide whatever care, both emotional and physical that my clients and their family's needed. In end of life situations the ability to give dignity, confidentiality and working calmly under emotionally charged environments are skills that transfer to many circumstances.

I worked as an aide at the Allison location under new ownership. In this period of time there was a lot of staffing changes, and I frequently was training and assisting in orienting new people to caregiving. My first priority is always to encourage dignity for the residents we served.

I began work as a CNA in the Dumont facility, when that location closed I moved to Allison and worked for ABCM until the corporation was sold.

As an aide I provided prompt care for residents, kept accurate records, and worked under a nurse's supervision and alongside co-workers. This is a fast paced job where attention to detail and clear communication are vital.