After contributing almost 70 years of service to Carinity between them, two of our dedicated long-serving employees have entered deserved retirement.
Leti Asi and Ann Jones had vastly different roles, but both left an indelible impression on the people they served - and those they worked alongside.
Leti worked at the Carinity Clifford House aged care home in Brisbane for 39 years, in roles including personal carer, nurse, and activities officer.
Motivated by the close alignment of Carinity's values and her own philosophy, Leti embarked on a new career - dedicated to meeting the needs of seniors - while in her 30s.
That included taking residents to off-site events such as dining and concerts, improving the lives of people living with dementia, and fostering inter-generational friendships between residents and local school students.
Leti has enjoyed establishing connections with the elderly and absorbing their wisdom.
"The favourite part of my job is making those connections with residents. I love listening to them, knowing the stories, helping them to overcome challenges, and taking them out to do what they want to do," she said.
"The big thing about aged care is if you can look after the residents' little needs, you'll never have a problem.
"It makes your heart feel good. I'll go home satisfied, feeling that I've done a good thing for someone today. That was my purpose and my biggest goal: to serve others. It's part of my DNA.
"I love the spiritual part of this place. There are also so many family connections to Clifford House, and that's what makes this place that extra special."
Ann Jones was a stalwart of Carinity's accounting and finance teams at head office for 30 years, ending her career as Finance Manager.
When she started with the organisation, its head office at Fortitude Valley boasted just two staff in payroll, two IT employees, and a small finance team.
"When I came to work at Carinity we had four residential aged care facilities, three or four retirement villages, no schools, and 15 home care packages," Ann recalls.
Carinity now has three times the number of aged care homes, five retirement communities, five schools, and 800 home care clients.
"During all of my time at Carinity I have seen my role as supporting the people on the front line to perform their finance tasks as effectively as possible and to understand those tasks," Ann said.
"This is what I believe I have been called to do: to support others and encourage them to do the best that they can.
"As I think of my time at Carinity there have been many challenges but also lots of fun times together. I have worked with some fabulous people here. I believe Carinity's greatest asset is the caring staff."
In addition to Leti and Ann's retirements, Dale Hansen recently finished up at Carinity Education Glendyne in Hervey Bay.
