Sunshine is known for cultivating a family atmosphere for our children, families and staff. In addition to creating a new “family” here, Sunshine provides an enriched opportunity for “real” families to join our healthcare team. This month, we will place the spotlight on three families who work at Sunshine. They are two sister sets and a parents/sibling unit, who work side-by-side delivering optimum care for our children.
First, we have three sisters, Sheila Estrella, RN; Charmaine Salvatierra, RN; and Lovely Llamos, RN. These nurses deliver loving care while maintaining their strong family bond. For Charmaine and Lovely, their reason for choosing a nursing career circles back to family. As Charmaine explains, “I always wanted to work in healthcare because almost all of my family members are nurses. As I grew up, I could see how dedicated they were working in the healthcare field.” For Lovely, it was her two sisters, Sheila and Charmaine, who suggested that she apply for a position at Sunshine. Lovely explains, “I began working at Sunshine because my two sisters Sheila and Charmaine encouraged me to. They told me that Sunshine is a nice place to work and that they had an amazing experience working with such great people there.” Lovely believes working together makes it “easy to ask questions or ask for help.” Charmaine says, “Working together with your family builds team work. Not only does it strengthen your work performance, it also creates a comfortable working environment.”
Our second set of sisters are CNAs Jenny Chalco and Dina Tenesaca. Speaking about her experience at Sunshine, Dina shares, “I always knew that I wanted to work in healthcare; my passion is to help people in need.” And, it is obvious that her heart is really with the children that she cares for each day. When they first started working at Sunshine, the sisters had encouraged one another to look for jobs at Sunshine. Dina was the first sister to join our team, and then brought Jenny into our family. They both are known to take on different assignments to support the team.
The Reyes’ are our third healthcare family. They are John, CNA and Airene, RN and their son, Joshua, CNA. For the Reyes family, working in the healthcare field has been their dream. Both John and Airene heard about Sunshine through their son, Joshua. Airene states, “My son Josh was the first employee here in our family. He had been encouraging me to work at Sunshine.” John says, “Joshua recommended Sunshine because he knew I would like it here. Working with family members gives me a feeling of comfort; we can share ideas about how to work more efficiently.” Airene shares a similar sentiment, “Working together makes me feel at home.” Airene was also motivated by her family members, who work in the healthcare field, inspiring her career choice. She shared, “I had been working as a school nurse while I was in the Philippines for 18 years. I came from a family of nurses and doctors, so I always knew I would be working in healthcare and would be comfortable with my chosen career. Choosing a profession in healthcare was inspired by family.” Joshua explains, “I think it is an added bonus to work with family members as it provides more opportunity for the whole family to be together. It also makes me feel happy to be with them outside our home.”
Sunshine is so happy to have wonderful families working together who are dedicated to making the children’s home a great place to be.