When Minetta Brockington woke up to nearly ten inches of snow last Tuesday, her first thought was her client, Marjorie W.

“Miss Marge is 99 years old. She depends on me to come to her house every day, to get her washed and dressed and prepare her food for the day,” Minetta says. “I knew I needed to go see her that morning, even if I couldn’t drive in the snow. I just had a feeling that something wasn’t right.”

Minetta is a Certified Home Health Aide (CHHA) with Family & Children’s Service (FCS) Home Care Services department, one of 75 aides who care for nearly 160 seniors and disabled clients throughout Monmouth County. Under the supervision of a Registered Nurse (RN), Minetta and her CHHA colleagues assist clients with daily personal functions and perform some semi-skilled tasks for clients with unstable or acute medical conditions.

Prior to last week’s predicted storm, staff reached out to every Home Care client to be sure they were ready for the event; that they had adequate food in the house, they had their medications and they could call upon a neighbor or family member in case the aide was unable to make it.

“Our aides are expected to visit their clients if they can do so safely,” FCS Director of Nursing Kathleen Vourlos said. “However, due to the forecast, we were unsure if the aides would be able to safely travel.”

But many of them went anyway.

“As we saw from our experience with Hurricane Sandy, many of our aides did arrive at their clients’ homes,” Kathleen said. “Some even slept over the night before so that their client wouldn’t be alone the next day. We really have a very dedicated and professional group of aides.”

Minetta’s dedication that snowy morning led her to seek a ride from a neighbor. As soon as she arrived at Marjorie’s home, Minetta knew something was wrong.

“Miss Marge was not in her chair,” Minetta said. “She was in her bed, too weak to get up. I knew it was serious.”

Minetta quickly got Marjorie a glass a water, helped her to the bathroom and called Marjorie’s daughter, who in turn called the ambulance. Marjorie was admitted to the hospital where she was administered life-saving blood treatments. This week she was back home, exactly where she wants to be.

“I wouldn’t be here without Minetta,” Marjorie says. “I couldn’t wait to get home from the hospital and see her again. She is so good to me.”

Kathleen says Minetta’s life-saving actions during the storm and her many years of dedicated service to her clients are why Minetta was named FCS “Aide of the Month” for January.

“Like many of her colleagues, Minetta is able to lighten the client’s mood with her presence,” Kathy says. “She is able to talk to the patient about what’s important to them. That’s something you don’t learn in school.”

For her part, Minetta says she was called to the profession. “As a child growing up in Jamaica, I would always be taking care of people.”

Shortly after emigrating to the U.S., Minetta received her CHHA training from FCS and has been with the agency for 15 years. Her children have tried to convince her to retire and move to Florida, but she says her clients are too important.

“My clients say I should be a nurse.” Minetta says. “But I love what I do. That is a real blessing.”