Rosalie

Rosalie's path into caregiving began with a different plan. When she came to the United States in 1997, she enrolled in nursing school because she wanted to take care of people. She earned her CNA, but a health scare interrupted everything. Her father had passed, and when she fell ill with similar symptoms she feared she was facing the same. She recovered, and that experience reshaped how she saw her life. For more than two decades since, she has dedicated herself to caring for older adults, drawing on the Filipino cultural value of looking after the elderly that she grew up with. Almost all of Rosalie's career has been spent in private one-on-one care, often with the same family for years at a time. With one client she stayed for five years, and that kind of long, steady relationship is what she looks for. She brings practiced patience to dementia care, treating each hard moment more like getting along with a child than arguing through it. As she puts it, "I don't take it to the heart." Away from work she is a passionate cook, and she brings that same warmth into every home she shares with a family.