Nomination Letter

Written by Susan, Jimsy's daughter 

It is our great pleasure to nominate Huichin (Belinda) Hung as caregiver of the year. She has been taking care of our Mom, Jimsy, with the same compassion, respect, and diligence, that we would ourselves. We are completely comfortable that Mom is in such caring hands. 

Our 92-year-old Mom had a stroke 10 years ago, which left her paralyzed on the aleft side. Earlier this year, Mom was becoming increasingly wheelchair-bound and less able to leave the home. Her caregiver was having problems transferring Mom out of the wheelchair, and often needed to resort to using an electric lift.  With her decreasing mobility, we feared that Mom might have to move to an assisted care facility, which would have been devasting. Even in her nineties, Mom has an active social life with her neighbors, church friends, and lifelong Army friends who had also retired in the Washington area. Mom had enjoyed attending church, dining out with friends and family several times a week, hosting gatherings at her house, and attending neighborhood parties. She desperately wanted to stay at home and to continue her busy and fulfilling activities. In January 2020, Mom lost her longstanding caregiver.  

We were incredibly fortunate to find BrightStar Care of Fairfax who paired Mom with Belinda as her regular daytime caregiver. Belinda exceeded all our expectations! With the skilled training from BrightStar nurse Mona Amireh, Belinda was able to transfer mom from the wheelchair easily without the lift. Mom felt confident immediately that she could stay in her beloved home. That was just the beginning! Belinda always goes the extra mile to make Mom’s life more fun and interesting, whether it is cooking delicious Taiwanese food in the wok or planting a garden in the back yard. Mom finds real joy in going out to her patio with Belinda to watch the flowers grow. We purchased a wheelchair van to increase Mom’s mobility. Recognizing how important it is for Mom to be out and about, Belinda makes an extra effort to take Mom shopping, for coffee at Starbucks, or to the hair salon to have Mom’s hair done for a special occasion. Belinda has an upbeat attitude and she and Mom enjoy talking and laughing together.  

When the coronavirus epidemic hit, we were so thankful that Mom was in Belinda’s skilled hands rather than being in a potentially dangerous facility. As you can imagine, the lockdown was a challenge for a socially active nonagenarian! Belinda found creative ways to keep Mom safely occupied. She worked with Mom to plan special picnics on the patio, where neighbors could pass by and visit from a safe distance. Belinda took Mom on wheelchair walks in the neighborhood and on drives to get out of the house. Even amid the epidemic, Belinda made sure that Mom could visit our father’s grave at Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day. Mom’s decreasing mobility has made it difficult for her to access the gravesite. Despite the cemetery’s uneven ground, Belinda pushed Mom’s wheelchair to the site. Belinda brought a gorgeous bouquet of peonies from her own garden that she and Mom placed on Dad’s grave. Peonies were his favorite flower. The peonies that Belinda planted in Mom’s yard are a special reminder of our parents’ 53-year marriage.  

Although Mom is determined to stay in her home in the Washington D.C. area, my husband Sam and I live in Colorado, and my brother Arthur lives in California, which can create anxieties for us. Belinda’s expert care allows us to feel confident that Mom is receiving the kind of attention that keeps her happy, active, and feeling productive in her nineties. It is like having a family member taking care of Mom. Sam is a physician and I am a nurse practitioner. Without hesitation, we can say that Belinda is the best caregiver that we have ever encountered in our careers. We feel that she deserves special recognition as BrightStar’s Caregiver of the Year. We have been so thrilled with Belinda, as well as with Robert, Kerry, Mona, Patrick, Nicole, and all the BrightStar Fairfax team!