These are your #LocalHeroes — ordinary people doing extraordinary things in Sweetwater County. This SweetwaterNOW series highlights those often unnoticed acts of kindness to the incredible actions of many in our community.
PINEDALE — After receiving several Local Heroes recommendations on how wonderfully caring and compassionate Sublette Center employees are, we decided to feature some of them for #Local Heroes.
When the COVID-19 virus finally hit the Sublette Center, employees in every department stepped up to ensure residents were safe, cared for and most importantly loved.
While we know all of the employees at the Sublette Center are worthy of this nomination on their own, we’ve decided to highlight those who were named specifically.
April Rose
Five years ago, April Rose started working for the Sublette Center as a housekeeper. Since then, April obtained her CNA license and then took a job as the activities director for the facility. By obtaining her CNA license, April can help out the center when needed.
“COVID kind of ran through our facility,” April said. “I caught it.”
“We went nine months without one and then it spread like wildfire,” April said.
Once April tested positive for the virus, she started working in the COVID-19 area with residents and other employees who were sick.
“We were just together, fighting it together,” April said. “It was pretty mild for me.”
As the activities director April was once busy ensuring all residents participated in some sort of activity, socializing or getting outside. Now, the priorities have shifted to making sure residents find a way to communicate with loved ones virtually.
“Things have completely changed with COVID,” April said.
One thing that hasn’t changed is how April continues to go above and beyond to help residents cope with the changes. She spends a lot of time with each individual resident making sure their needs are being met. From having a mani and pedi day to making sure residents speak to loved ones, April is committed to keeping the residents going.
Her goal is a simple one: bring joy and love to the residents.
I feel that this is the end of their lives and they need all the love they can get. I think it’s just something inside of me wanting to love them in their last days.
April knows all to well how residents can often get depressed without seeing their relatives. Some of the residents who contracted the virus also suffered from depression after being isolated from the others in the building too.
One male resident who contracted the virus and wound up going to the hospital because of difficulty breathing was one of the residents who suffered from depression. Around this same time, the resident’s mother passed away. When he returned to the facility, he wasn’t the same.
“We couldn’t get him to do anything,” April said.
April just continued reaching out even more to include him. Finally, she said she just had to have a hard conversation with him about what he was going through.
“I just started giving him extra love,” April said.
It worked. He started interacting with employees more. This was something April still recalls was how showing more affection to someone can help them through rough times.
Micaela Craig
Micaela Craig graduated in the Spring of 2020 from Pinedale High School and is currently attending Western Wyoming Community College online in pursuit of a nursing degree.
Micaela has been working at the center for two years. She started when she was a junior in high school and is currently a CNA and is responsible for the daily care of residents. She helps them shower, eat and get in and out of chairs and beds. Currently, Micaela was working in the COVID-19 area of the Sublette Center.
Micaela said her favorite part of the job is getting close to her residents and being there to have fun with them.
“To me it’s important right now to keep a smile on my face because the residents are scared, they miss their families and they want to be with them,” Micaela said. “We are the family while they’re in the center so it’s important to be happy and help them stay in good spirits.”
While in isolation, the CNAs and nurse on shift are the only people residents get to see.
“Being happy and having fun with them helps them get better in my opinion,” she said. “Treating my residents like family is important because to me they are my family. I see them everyday, I learn all of their interests, what makes them happy, how they like their coffee, they become a huge part of my life. I worry about them on my days off and I get excited every day to see them.”
Taking a negative and turning it into something positive is how Michaela and other employees keep on going.
“I enjoy being in the isolation because you’re by yourself with your residents, so it’s more one on one,” she said.
Micaela tested positive for COVID on November 11 and was isolated from her family by staying at the Sublette Center.
“I was able to go to work every day because I had no symptoms,” she said. “I missed Thanksgiving with my family, but my residents made up for it and made it not so bad.”
Micaela’s family visited the center and painted the windows for the residents and to spend time with her while she was stuck in isolation.
“My little sister is 11 and was scared because I had COVID she insisted to come see me and make sure I was really okay,” Micaela said.
The family painted moose and turkeys on the window to lift some of the residents spirits and it was returned with big smiles from residents.
“They just loved it. They brought my dog to see me too and show to my residents. It made our day a lot better,” she said.
While working in the center’s COVID-19 unit, those in there either have the virus or recovered from it. Micaela said some days she will put in a 12-hour shift and other days it’s an 8-hour shift. It all depends on how everyone is feeling.
“I am proud to be part of the Sublette Center family. We were able to keep COVID out of our facility for nine months. We each made so many sacrifices to keep our residents safe,” Micaela said. “Some of us haven’t see our grandmas and grandpas since last march to ensure our residents’ safety. I am grateful for my bosses who have guided us through this hard time and the residents’ families for understanding we’re doing the best we can.”
Janet Goulette
Janet Goulette has worked for the Sublette Center for a total of 24 years. Goulette, who is a registered nurse, takes pride in making the center feel like a home to those living there.
Janet works with the CNA’s to ensure all residents at the center are safe and have the support systems they need. For Janet providing one-on-one support for the dementia and Alzheimer’s residents she serves is important.
Sweetwater Photography photo
Often times the residents Janet works with are frustrated because they are having problems remembering things. It is hard for Janet because seeing them frustrated causes her to be frustrated, but she puts those frustrations aside.
Janet said she treats the residents like family members because to her, they are family. She makes sure to give them all the love and respect they deserve.
“The interaction with the residents is the best part of the job,” Janet said.
Like April and Micaela, Janet also took her turn working in the COVID-19 area of the facility. She said it was hard seeing some of the residents get so lonely from being isolated, but she just tried to give them as much attention as possible and make sure they were comfortable.
“This last year has been a challenging year,” Janet said.
Sometimes Janet would put on the residents’ favorite music, make sure they have their favorite book or just simply give them a smile and hold their hand.
“I think you have to have a big heart,” Janet said.
Janet said she’s proud to work for the Sublette Center and she’s happy to be part of a team that truly cares about its residents.
Do you know someone who would make a great #LocalHeroes feature? Let us know! Fill out the form below with your nomination. ?
