Karen Ristau, Health Care Aide, Palliative Unit

In a nutshell, Karen is described as selfless and always thinking of ways to help people feel better if they are hurting, offering up kindness without hesitation. If she can think of a way to make a resident’s time at St. Joseph’s Home better, she makes it happen. She came up with the idea for a Comfort Closet, a room with donated items for residents in need. A year after it opened, she is still thinking of items that could be stocked in the closet for residents.

Karen routinely takes extra time to listen to residents while she delivers care, often spending extra time at their bedsides. Her attentive nature recently made all the difference for a palliative resident who, in her final days, was weak and spending much of her time in bed. By sitting with the resident and learning more about her as a person, Karen realized they shared a love of horses and asked her daughter-in-law to bring one of her horses to St. Joseph’s Home. The horse was brought to the parking lot just outside the site, and the resident was able to spend time petting the horse and being near him. The joy on her face was visible, and there were many tears shed that day by the resident, her family and staff alike.