FEBRUARY 29 • 2024 | 23
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aregiving is an import-
ant public health 
role that affects the 
quality of life for millions of 
individuals, including those 
with developmental disabilities. 
And the impact of caregivers on 
life and community makes the 
work they do a critical part of a 
strong society.
On Sunday, March 3, local 
nonprofit JARC, an organi-
zation serving adults with 
developmental disabilities, will 
honor the work of their care-
givers on National Caregiver 
Appreciation Day. This annual 
national date honors, appreci-
ates and thanks the caregivers 
who give their time and effort 
to care for those in need, such 
as for those people living with 
disabilities, illnesses and the 
elderly. 
JARC employs a large staff of 
caregivers who provide care to 
120 adults with developmental 
disabilities at 45 locations 
in Metro Detroit, including 
24-hour care in group homes 
and independent living settings. 
One of their many exceptional 
caregivers is Michelle Smith, 
who has worked at JARC for the 
past 34 years.

Michelle is currently the 
home manager of a JARC group 
home and serves six ladies who 
live there. She enjoys learning 
all of the interests of the ladies 
she serves and values her 
relationships with each of them. 
 “The ladies are each unique 
in so many ways, especially with 
their own interests,
” Michelle 
says. “Judy is very loving and 
playful and loves to dance 
and twirl. Marcia thinks she’s 

Beyonce; while she can’t speak 
in sentences, she can sing! And 
Sandra is the Bingo queen.
” 
Michelle has also seen 
personal growth in these ladies 
and everyone she has served 
while at JARC, sharing that she 
has helped people she serves 
as they work to overcome 
their fears, set goals and learn 
something new, and develop 
coping skills.

Michelle feels particularly 
fortunate to see the personal 
growth in Judy, who has been 
served by JARC almost as 
long as Michelle has worked at 
JARC. When Judy first moved 
into the JARC home, she would 
need to visit a hospital to have 
any physical care provided, as 
she would not allow anyone 
to touch her. While Judy is 
nonverbal and her expressions 
can be difficult to interpret, she 
has come to trust Michelle and 
the other caregivers who work 
in her home and now allows 

them to provide her personal 
care and even enjoys showing 
affection to them.
“Beyond the exceptional care 
she provides, Michelle and the 
entire JARC team working in 
the Milan home are focused 
on creating an environment of 
happiness and independence 
for the ladies living there,
” said 
JARC CEO Shaindle Braunstein. 
“Bringing decades of experience 
to her role at JARC, Michelle 
also cares about making sure 
that any other staff member 
who wants to can benefit from 
her knowledge. She has never 
turned down a staff person who 
called her for help and always 
has a smile on her face.
”

Michelle is also passionate 
about the sense of community 
she has with her fellow JARC 
caregivers and the opportunities 
she has to teach new employees. 
During the span of her career at 
JARC, she has worked in four 
JARC homes, working both 

midnight shifts and afternoon 
shifts, eventually becoming 
a home manager. Michelle’s 
willingness to teach and guide 
new managers has a clear 
impact on her team, which is 
evident in that most staff in the 
home she manages have worked 
there for nearly two decades. “
A 
big part of my job is to support 
my staff, and they support me 
in return,
” she says.

While Michelle has made 
a difference in the lives of the 
people JARC serves, working 
at JARC has also impacted 
Michelle’s own life, and she feels 
fortunate that in helping others, 
she has been able to learn new 
things as well. 
“Everyone has an impact,
” she 
shares, recalling learning about 
the Holocaust during visits from 
the mother of a person JARC 
serves who was a Holocaust 
survivor, and about Judaism 
and the importance of shemira
(watching over the body of the 
deceased prior to burial) from 
a person who had worked at a 
Jewish funeral home.

Michelle says her career in 
direct care and her dedication 
to the people JARC serves is 
summed up in one thing: the 
love. “Caregiving is the best job 
you can do,
” Michelle says. 
“If there was a place to learn 
how to love and be loved, and 
to be taken care of, JARC is the 
place. I know the people we 
serve truly appreciate the care 
we provide.
” 

If you are interested in becoming a 

part of the important work JARC does 

or know of someone who may be, visit 

www.jarc.org/careers to explore career 

opportunities.

JARC honors Michelle Smith, employed 34 years
as a caregiver and a manager of a group home. 
A Very Caring Person

JN STAFF

JARC caregiver Michelle Smith with Marsha, a person 
JARC serves in the home Michelle manages. 

