Before joining Spectrum as a Support Worker, Rosaria was already hard at work. A member of Melbourne’s vibrant Italian community, she worked two jobs to support her loved ones, as a machinist and in a restaurant. When one of these roles closed, Rosaria realised that there was a missing piece.

“I wanted to help people. I always wanted to help people.”

So like her sister the year before, and shortly followed by her brother Vito, Rosaria joined Spectrum in our Aged Care and Disability services team in 2000, and stepped into a new career as a Support Worker.

“I started with five clients, and it slowly, slowly [built up],” she explains.

Rosaria has built strong relationships with all of her clients over the years. Including a particular gentleman, she says “Who used to be difficult – but with patience, he became my best client!”

One special lady with a disability, was only 39 when Rosaria came into her life to support her to live more independently. “She was my first client, one of my first clients. I started with her when she was 39, and I was with her for 21, 22 years. I used to go three times a week to see her.”

Though the client passed in recent years in her 60s, it’s touching to think of how much joy and relief Rosaria would have brought her through more than two decades of care.

And recently, Rosaria received an exciting invitation to a birthday celebration. Another previous client, who Rosaria had supported for years, was turning one hundred years old!

It’s clear that Rosaria has found her way deeply into her clients’ hearts, and ours, too! For Support Workers who truly care about their clients, we’re pleased to be the organisation they choose to represent each day.

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Reflecting on her career with Spectrum, Rosaria says there are two things that are vital to being a Support Worker. For the clients and their families, these qualities are both hard to find elsewhere, but priceless.

The first is patience.

For clients struggling with pain, disability, or the inability to live independently and the need to accept help for the first time (as many of our parents experience!), they can feel stressed or struggle to adapt. Rosaria says “Especially clients with dementia, they don’t always know what they are saying. So you have to be patient.”

The second and most important quality, is love.

“I know it’s our job, but also you have to put your heart in,” says Rosaria. “If you don’t have the feeling in your heart, better not to do it. You put your heart in with your client.”

Heart is a quality that our Spectrum’ clients family members love.

Seeing Rosaria with one of her clients, one was genuinely surprised. “Oh my God,” they said, “You treat them like one of the family!”.

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These days, when choosing an Aged Care provider can be overwhelming for families, the decision becomes so much more than who offers the lowest price.

It’s about finding a provider who believe in Support Workers like Rosaria, who will become a part of yours or your mum or dad’s life. Who will bring joy and warmth into their home, and who go the extra mile.

(In fact, just this week Rosaria has made special lasagnas to freeze for Christmas, at her clients’ request – so even during the holiday break, they still get to enjoy her support and comfort.)

For Rosaria, this level of care, like she would for her own family, is just how she works, every day.

“My clients, they love me too,” she says.

One of Rosaria’s extra specialties for her clients is her incredible cooking. “I have never had any complaints!” she laughs. One client said, “Rosaria, if you leave – I don’t know how to cook anymore!” And for the wife of another elderly client, she looks forward to the fortnightly fresh-baked biscuits that Rosaria makes them, so much that she no longer wants to buy shop-bought ones.

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A lot has changed in 25 years, since Rosaria first began her journey as a Spectrum Support Worker. There’s a lot more technology involved now, with digital rosters and paperwork, but the love and care, the heart that she puts into each individual client, remains the same.

Spectrum is so proud to celebrate this special milestone – a quarter of a century of care and dedication – and the contribution of Rosaria, Vito and their colleague Joan Manley, who also recently hit 25 years at Spectrum!

Join us in celebrating Rosaria, Vito and Joan, and our hand-picked team of Aged Care Support Workers, who bring so much heart each day into the homes of elderly loved ones across Melbourne. They truly are some of Spectrum’s treasures.

Kelsey Dattoli, Communications Coordinator

Spectrum Migrant Resource Centre

At Spectrum, we’re not a big agency where the client is just a number. We’re personal and local, but we have a big voice – advocating for seniors on a nationwide level.

We’re proud to provide exceptional care, culturally-tailored and even language-matched services for seniors from all of Melbourne’s diverse communities, from Italian and Macedonian to Chinese and Vietnamese.

Our caring team have been trusted by Melbourne families for nearly half a century. And we’d be pleased to help you, or your family member, find services to help you live independently.

So why not reach out to us today?