‘It’s about what you’re doing for the people that counts’
Verneil “Ric” Williams is still in shock, “still in awe over it,” he said.
But he said his boss had a feeling he would win the award, given how well he’s worked with his clients, especially a family whose children have autism.
The day came, and in fact, Williams took home the honors.
Williams was named the 2018 Pennsylvania Direct Care Worker of the Year, at an event held in Harrisburg, March 28. The event was organized by the Pennsylvania Homecare Association and the Pennsylvania Department of Aging.
Williams has been an aide with Extended Family Care for nearly 20 years. According to Laura Partridge, Business Development Manager with the agency who nominated him for the award, Williams has provided care to more than 75 diverse Pennsylvanians and has earned the respect of clients, families and co-workers due to his loyalty and commitment to provide compassionate, client-centered, quality care.
“Ric’s willingness to travel, upbeat personality and cheery disposition provide hope, positivity and a sense of calming previously uncommon to the unique consumers he serves,” Partridge said in a statement provided to the New Pittsburgh Courier. “Ric is often able to brighten their day with his positivity, demonstration of respect for their diversity and compassion and empathy in knowing that they need his help.
“Ric continues to treat his clients as if they were his own family,” she added. “He is compassionate, reliable, respectful, professional, and humble. He is an advocate for his clients and a role model to his peers.”
“I’ve had the experience to see how people are treated on both sides of the fence,” Williams told the Courier in an exclusive interview. “My grandmother had Lou Gehrig’s disease, she moved in with my parents and I learned how to take care of her. We had an assistant that came in and helped, but me and my mom and sister, we were there 24/7. We’re still the family, that’s how I learned it and I truly believe you have to believe in yourself and believe in what you’re doing to do these types of jobs, because the jobs are stressful.”
Williams was selected from a record number of nominees this year—195. He also received a $1,000 cash prize from PHA’s Foundation for Home Care and Hospice after receiving the award.
“Direct care workers are the unsung heroes of home-based care,” said PHA CEO Vicki Hoak in a statement. “They provide vital lifelines to the seniors they serve. They act as the eyes and ears of their consumers and can recognize a change in condition and help to prevent avoidable hospitalizations. They deserve the recognition they received today, and so much more.”
“Direct care workers are essential to the delivery of long-term care services and supports in Pennsylvania,” said Secretary of Aging Teresa Osborne in a statement. “Today (March 28) provided the Wolf Administration, in partnership with PHA, the opportunity to gather with an amazing group of direct care workers who every day provide critical services and supports that enable the older Pennsylvanians entrusted to their care to live with independence and dignity. While they rarely receive the recognition they deserve, the direct care workers honored today serve as a model for others who choose this profession.”
Williams said for those looking to get into the home health care field, you must be an empathetic person. “You have to understand that not everything is going to go your way. You’re going to have those days where it looks like nothing is going to go right…but you’re doing something to help someone else feel better, what better feeling is that?”
Williams has been in the health care field since 1997, an employee at Extended Family Care since 2001. He’s a lifelong Pittsburgher, graduated from Penn Hills High School, and still resides in Penn Hills today.
“I’m a positive person, I really have to be because I’ve been through a lot of things in my personal life, and I managed to turn that around and pay it forward,” he said. “That’s what it’s all about…It’s not about the pay, it’s about what you’re doing for the people that counts.”
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