Savta Lily and Juliet: An employee/employer relationship that turns into friendship | iSavta
Savta Lily and Juliet: An employee/employer relationship that turns into friendship
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ביטוח רפואי למטפלים זרים במחירים הנמוכים בארץ

שיתוף פעולה ייחודי המאפשר לכם לקבל את השירות המהיר והאיכותי ביותר, המחירים הנמוכים ביותר, בכל רחבי הארץ

It’s always refreshing to meet a caregiver with her employer who is totally in accord with each other. With all these news about employers abusing their caregiver or caregivers abusing their charge, it’s a breath of fresh air to see this two. I met Juliet Mendoza and her employer, Ms. Lily when Juliet won the Orange Phone call story contest. I was amazed at the easy and amiable impression I feel between them. I am so envious! Tell me about Savta Lily, your employer… Savta Lily claims she is "a cranky old woman". But I, and everyone who knows her, know her as an extremely loving mother, grandmother and great grandmother, who cherishes life and is thankful for the time she has left here in this world. She grew up in Guatemala and also spent many years in the US. During her years, she's experienced vast wealth and has also struggled to make ends meet. She has known true love and has also learned to be alone. She has experienced more adventures than anyone I've ever met and all of these experiences of hers have left her with an amazing attitude for living her life. Perhaps this is the reason that, for all of the people in her extended family – a son and daughter, a daughter in law and son in law, 7 grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren, SHE is the one everyone goes to for advice. Even though Savta Lily is the "elder" of her family, to me, she seems like the youngest – the youngest in heart and in spirit. Personally, Savta Lily is a source of support, strength, love and inspiration. So much that I sometimes refer to her jokingly as "my caregiver"… How is your relationship to Ms. Lily? “We always find it easy to laugh together, we respect each other’s time. She treats me as her child, scolds me and said that I behave like I'm her doctor... (laugh)” “Our friendship is flavored with respect, humility and mutual empathy…we talk about our families, love, friendship and being open with each other…sometimes we argue like mother and daughter but we never DISRESPECT each other, and if there's a little misunderstanding we discuss it and it's over…” Activities? “We do sewing, we bake, we cook together...we're partners... (smiles and laugh).” Sweetest thing from her that I will always keep in my heart... “We are staying in the same house 24/7, our bedrooms are side by side but I still receive emails from her daily like jokes and inspirational messages, pictures, etc… things that will make my day beautiful! Not a day goes by when she doesn't say to me "thank you" and "I love you Jessie" especially at night before she goes to sleep.” Savta Lily, the little lady I met whose bright smile made the meeting with the winners of the contest very easy and light, making everyone feel at ease. How did Juliet, your caregiver made a difference to your life? Oh, she is a sweet and thoughtful caregiver, she's a friend to me and my family... a wonderful daughter to me. She's a nudnik when it comes to my medications, eating habits... But I know this is all done with love and endless patience so I always remember to tell her how I appreciate having her in my life. What would I do without her help? I can barely bend my body nor do anything at all so she is a gift to me. How did you get involved with the contest? I thought the contest was a lot of fun. It might have been a little more interesting had some of the entries contained a little bit of spice, intrigue or even scandal. But, I really was moved by many of them and could really sense how honorable and how upstanding many of the contestants were – being forced to maintain their dignity and their humor in difficult circumstances, far away from home. What was your impression with the people/community you met while the contest was going on? I was inspired by the enthusiasm of all those who took part in the contest. It's a shame not everyone could win. Needless to say, I am delighted that it was Jhet who ultimately won the contest. I mobilized my family members in order to give her a better chance of winning. They were all moved by what she wrote. When I met some of the other contestants in the Central Bus Station for the awarding of the prizes, I was impressed with the warm feelings among many of those who took part in the contest. I think we Israelis could learn a lesson from that sense of mutual support or "firgoon" as we say in Hebrew. Any last words you can share to caregivers as an employer? The only advice I would share with other caregivers is to be patient and kind. Eventually, this attitude will be pleasantly rewarded. But my experience with caregivers in Israel is that they are usually very virtuous, so I doubt they need advice from me. I asked “How does Savta Lily maintain smiling all the time? "I love people, I love life, and I've been very blessed with my family and friends. The Lord allowed me to live twice after being at death's door during my neck operation and my open heart surgery. And so, I consider myself lucky to be alive – to love and to be loved". Juliet, coincidentally found a job thru iSavta. (I found this out when I met her for the awarding of the prize) “I was aware of iSavta thru a group page of caregivers when I was searching for a new job, that was April last year...funny, I checked my emails last night and found out that I joined iSavta on nov.7, 2011. I got my current job now thru the iSavta site. I was already signed up on the site so I just updated my account with no expectations. Surprisingly, within hours I got many calls from employers and agencies offering jobs and it’s how I met my Savta Lily. How did she join the contest? “I learned the contest on iSavta's fan page on facebook, that was Feb 20... After reading the mechanics of the contest, I went right away to Savta in her room and told her that "listen, we have a project, we're going to join this contest" and she was very happy then and willing to help me write my story/entry… The day after, I'm still thinking about the contest, the $1000 prize, that's a big amount and was challenged from my horoscope reading that day that I'll get involved on an online thing and will make it, (similar to writing and contest online) forgot the exact words, (laugh) but then it took me a month to finally submit my entry...and the rest was history...” (Read: Juliet Mendoza on winning the Grand Prize of the Phone Call Story Contest)

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