Staff Spotlight: Meet Jeanette

Tracy (L) and Jeanette (R) welcome guests to
a recent community HIV education event.

Jeanette originally took courses to be a pharmaceutical rep, but somehow made her way into our Positive Connections team and we couldn’t be happier about it!  As a coordinator for our South Central AIDS Education and Training Center (AETC) program, Jeanette spends a lot of her day arranging lectures and education opportunities with medical teams around the state.  Typically, she coordinates education sessions for others to present. But earlier this year, Jeanette began delivering lectures on Ending HIV in Arkansas and PrEP herself.  “I thoroughly enjoy it,” she says. 

Her favorite ARcare memory so far is the first HIV symposium that AETC put on in Arkansas a few years ago.  “We were all stressed and scrambling to pull it together, but we had over 80 people participate and when several of the attendees told us how much they got out of it, that made it all worth it.”

In her spare time, she likes playing games on her phone.  “Merge Dragons” is one of my favorites.  Family is also very important to Jeanette and she spends a lot of her free time outside of work enjoying it with her husband, daughter, mother, and prized pooch.

Fast Facts About Jeanette:

Jeanette's "pupper", Lexi lou

Famous person you’d most like to meet (living or dead!):  Fred Astaire, he’s pretty, whimsical, and multi-talented

Something that many people don’t know about you:  My closet is color-coded and divided by season.

Greatest fear: Losing someone I love

Weirdest job you’ve ever had:  Making fudge at a Candy Factory

The one thing you cannot resist:  My “pupper”, Lexi Lou

Your top travel destination in the US:  Boston! I’ve been to Boston a handful of times. I love the harbor and the ships.  And I love seeing the Navy men in uniform—I actually wanted to be in the Navy once upon a time.

Something you’d like to learn how to do:  Ride a motorcycle. I tried it once, but my bike got stolen!

When asked to describe Positive Connections in three words, Jeanette said “wonderful, patient-centered, and compassionate.”  Well we think you are pretty wonderful yourself, Jeanette, but we may be just a bit biased!  

Thank you, Jeanette, for keeping our patients at the center of ARcare’s HIV education and training program.

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Jeanette is a Coordinator for the ARcare Positive Connections South Central AIDS Education and Training Center (AETC).  The AETC program provides quality HIV training and education for healthcare professionals in Arkansas through lectures, technical assistance, virtual programming, and more.  Jeanette may be reached here.

Positive Connections is a program at ARcare connecting the community to HIV prevention, treatment and empowerment.  We believe in a future vision with zero new HIV transmissions and where every person living with or affected by HIV can thrive.  You can learn more about the Positive Connections Program here.

Staff Spotlight: Meet Shannon

Shannon provides HIV testing
at an event in Jonesboro.

Shannon is a Service Access Specialist in Jonesboro and is also a District Supervisor for our Ryan White team.  She works with clients to connect them to care and community resources available through the Ryan White program and offers HIV testing at events throughout the year.

Shannon has always been interested in studying people.  She graduated from Ohio State with a degree in sociology and, after working for over a decade in retail management, she jumped at the chance to work with those living with HIV and put her degree to use.  “I have loved it ever since,” she said.  

In her daily work, Shannon meets with clients, makes phone calls, schedules appointments, and makes sure her staff has what they need.  To describe a typical work day in her own words, it means “being a superhuman.”  Shannon is inspired to become that superhuman through remembering her mother’s perseverance: “My mom was a single mother who raised two kids while completing a college degree and working full time. She started out as a dispatcher and worked her way up to district manager in a cable business. She can do anything and she knows everything.” 

Shannon joins our PrEP Coordinator, 
Kyle, at an outreach event for the
Hispanic community called El Centro.

She also finds support from connections to those around her. The Positive Connections team has experienced significant loss over the past few years, especially with the passing of two coworkers with whom Shannon had a close working relationship; Vonda and Christy.  When asked what her favorite memory from work was, she says “driving to our annual retreat with Vonda and Christy. We could talk for hours about anything.”

As a hobby, Shannon loves to cook.  She says that if she were not working as a case manager with ARcare, she’d want to be a chef.  When she has 30 minutes of free time, she’s watching cooking shows or on social media learning and sharing about cooking.  In fact, Shannon regularly shares photos and videos of her adventures in cooking on Instagram. You can check them out here: @fat_girl_chef.  

When she isn’t busy working or cooking, she also likes to travel.  She says that New York is her “favorite place on earth. I love the history, the people, and attitude…and the bright lights.”

For fun, Shannon shares
cooking photos and videos
with her Instagram followers.

Quick Facts about Shannon:

Weirdest Job: Truck Broker

One Thing She Can’t Resist:  DIET COKE

Greatest Fear:  That I have no purpose. I’m just here taking up space and not contributing.

Favorite Movie Line:  “Son, you have a panty on your head.” –from Raising Arizona

One Thing She’d Like to Learn:  How to sing

Famous Person She Would Like To Have Met:  Eleanor Roosevelt

When asked what words she would use to describe Positive Connections, she said “helpful, supportive, knowledgeable.”  

Thank you, Shannon, for the support you offer to our clients and patients at ARcare Positive Connections.

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Shannon is a Service Access Specialist in our Jonesboro Service Access Center.  She participates in outreach and testing activities in and around the Jonesboro area and is available to meet with people living with HIV to connect them to care and support available through the Ryan White program.  Shannon may be reached here. 

Positive Connections is a program at ARcare connecting the community to HIV prevention, treatment and empowerment.  We believe in a future vision with zero new HIV transmissions and where every person living with or affected by HIV can thrive.  You can learn more about the Positive Connections Program here.

Staff Spotlight: Meet Kyle

Kyle is shown here in the driver's seat of the ARcare Mobile Unit,
which he regularly drives to HIV testing events across the state.

Kyle is a Service Access Specialist in Batesville.  As part of our case management team, he works with clients to connect them to HIV care and community resources available through the Ryan White program. 

We recently checked in to learn a little more about Kyle.  Here’s what we learned:

Kyle is always willing to lend a hand, frequently offering his assistance to other case managers around the state.  With that kind of work ethic, it’s no wonder he describes a typical day as follows: “coffee, phone calls, more coffee, paperwork, even more coffee, and repeat!”  His passion doesn’t stop with case management.  At any given time, you may see Kyle causing a commotion at HIV testing and awareness events around Arkansas.  It’s really not surprising that one of his favorite memories from work is “maneuvering the ARcare mobile unit through busy downtown Little Rock with Cathy Nation onboard!”  

Here's some Fast Facts about our Pal, Kyle:

• Little Know Fact:  Kyle has a twin brother.

• One Thing He Can’t Resist:  Memphis BBQ!

• Favorite Movie Line:  “Helloooo!” –from Mrs. Doubtfire

• Celebrity He’d Most Like to Meet:  Guy Fieri

• Greatest Fear:  Never finding his true love.

• Nickname at Work:  'Kevin'

Kyle is inspired by the one and only Elvis Presley, which he remembers as “a true Southern Gentleman with a heart of pure gold.  He would go out of his way to help anyone, despite having…fame and fortune at his disposal.”  He’s also inspired by nature, including Colorado Springs, CO.  “I absolutely fell in love with the Rocky Mountains!”

Kyle attends the 2019 SYNC Conference in Washington, D.C.
with Outreach coordinators Jeff Walker and Danny Harris.

Before he joined Positive Connections, Kyle was active in several other career areas, such as real estate and music education.  In fact, Kyle was previously a band director teaching music to kids in an Arkansas community just a few years ago.  He says that if he weren’t a case manager, he’d be a band director once again.  When asked what new thing he’d like to learn, he first started to jokingly sing the lyrics to Cher's If I Could Turn Back Time: "I had to make a Cher joke!” he says.  Eventually he gave in and stated, “I’d learn to fly an airplane.”

When asked what words he would use to describe ARcare Positive Connections, he said “compassionate, caring, and committed.”  

Thank you, Kyle, for your commitment to offering compassion to our clients and patients at ARcare Positive Connections!

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Kyle is a Service Access Specialist in our Batesville Service Access Center.  He participates in outreach and testing activities throughout Arkansas and is available to meet with people living with HIV to connect them to care and support available through the Ryan White program.  Kyle may be reached here. 

Positive Connections is a program at ARcare connecting the community to HIV prevention, treatment and empowerment.  We believe in a future vision with zero new HIV transmissions and where every person living with or affected by HIV can thrive.  You can learn more about the Positive Connections Program here.

Staff Spotlight: Meet Tren

Tren (left) joins our Operation Director Pat (right)
at the Simply Red Annual Empowerment Event in 2019.

Tren is a Service Access Specialist in Little Rock.  As part of our case management team, Tren works with clients to connect them to HIV care available through the Ryan White program.  She creates a plan of care for each client and assists them in accessing community resources and services.

 

We recently checked in to learn a little more about Tren.  Here’s what we learned:

Tren is inspired daily by her son.  According to this proud mother, “he’s God’s GREATEST gift to me and its only right that I do my best and work as hard as I can to instill the values of education and importance of family.”  She is also inspired by historical places of significance.  When asked what her favorite travel destination was, she said Washington, DC.  “It’s my favorite place because it has so many monumental places, such as the Dr. Martin Luther King Memorial.” 

If you visit the Little Rock office, you may see Tren multi-tasking to help clients and get things done.  In both working with clients and in her own life, she often recalls a quote from the movie The Players Club: “Make the money. Don’t let it make you.”  She says although her phone may ring off the hook all day long, she also gets a lot of laughs from her clients and co-workers throughout the day to make up for it.  One moment she remembers well is seeing her name on her office door for the first time.  “It’s corny, I know, but it made me feel ‘official’.” 

When asked what words she would use to describe ARcare Positive Connections, she said “motivating, life-changing, and trustworthy.”  

Thank you, Tren, for being a motivating force in the lives of our clients at ARcare Positive Connections.

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Tren is a Service Access Specialist in our Little Rock Service Access Center.  She participates in outreach and testing activities in Little Rock and is available to meet with people living with HIV to connect them to care and support available through the Ryan White program.  Tren may be reached here. 

Positive Connections is a program at ARcare connecting the community to HIV prevention, treatment and empowerment.  We believe in a future vision with zero new HIV transmissions and where every person living with or affected by HIV can thrive.  You can learn more about the Positive Connections Program here.