We have exciting news! Recently, one of our very own team members received a prestigious and well-deserved award. Last week, our team traveled to Tan-Tar-A Resort in the Ozarks for the Missouri Alliance for Home Care (MAHC) Annual Conference. There, Deanna Rice received the MAHC Paraprofessional Caregiver of the Year Award. We simply couldn’t be happier for her.

The Missouri Alliance for Home Care is Missouri’s largest trade association representing the interests and concerns of home health agencies, home care companies, hospices and private duty companies. Each year, they honor a paraprofessional caregiver who has gone above and beyond the call of duty by providing care to patients and clients.

Deanna Rice came to AccuCare Home Health Care of St. Louis three years ago, during which time we have seen her mature and develop into a first-rate professional caregiver who sets the standards for how all caregivers should be. Deanna brings experience, energy and empathy to her role. Though she came to AccuCare having worked in other occupational fields, her caregiving experience began ten years prior when she became a caregiver out of a personal family need to help care for her grandfather after he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. To her, she was simply caring for a family member whom she loved greatly, but her family and friends saw how she interacted with him and how patient she was. Deanna’s mother, an AccuCare caregiver at the time and still a team member, influenced her decision to accept a caregiver position with AccuCare.

Deanna shares that her greatest fulfillment has been working with the elderly and giving back each day. She leaves a lasting impression on clients’ lives, and often makes a difference through the “little things,” such as giving an impromptu pedicure, noticing and cleaning a smudge on a client’s glasses, or even giving water to a client’s pet. What’s obvious to her is often missed by other caregivers. She is a special person who puts her energy, heart and soul into everything she does. She is always ready for the next challenge and has kind words for every person she meets.

When Deanna isn’t working, she enjoys traveling with her husband and soul mate Willie. They enjoy spending a great deal of time with their large family, which includes Deanna’s three younger siblings and 21 nieces and nephews. They also love spoiling their “fur babies,” Diva and Lilly, whom she describes as being “treated better than most two-legged children.” Deanna enjoys time outdoors, decorating cakes, and working with dog rescues.

Deanna has a big heart and is highly regarded by all of us at AccuCare. She is an incredible role model for our team of caregivers. Thank you, Deanna, for all that you do for our team and for those in our care. Congratulations!