Dehab Teklit takes extreme pride in her work, even down to the smallest details.
A Housekeeping Aide at New Community Extended Care Center, Teklit dusts computers, empties trash from offices, mops, vacuums, and keeps tidy around the patio, lobby, Culinary Cafe and Adult Medical Day Care room. She makes sure that the first floor of Extended Care is clean, welcoming and pleasant for both residents and staff.
“Everyone loves the way she works here,” her supervisor, Ramon Acosta, said.
A highly respected employee by both managers and her co-workers, Teklit is diligent in all her endeavors, according to Veronica Onwunaka, Director of Nursing at Extended Care.
Teklit’s demeanor is “always pleasant and she has a kind spirit, which always shines through when interacting with her,” Onwunaka said.
Acosta described Teklit’s personality as shy and somewhat timid but said she speaks volumes through her
thoughtfulness and generosity.
“She’s very reliable,” said Acosta, Director of Housekeeping, Laundry and Maintenance at Extended Care.
“She’s the type of employee I don’t have to direct.”
Born in Eritrea’s capital city of Asmara, Teklit lived in Sudan before she arrived in New York and later moved to New Jersey. A self-described homebody, 52-year-old Teklit said she and her husband took their then 6-month- old daughter and left Africa due to the instability and difficult living conditions created by ongoing conflicts in the country. Teklit has lived in New Jersey for about 20 years and she and her husband have two daughters, ages 29 and 25.
Although she’s worked at Extended Care for 17 years (she began July 9, 1997), Teklit admits that she hasn’t gotten to know the names of many residents. Instead, she says she knows their faces.
“They came here because they cannot take care of themselves,” she said. Teklit says she tries to find ways to take pleasure in helping residents, rather than complaining about a task.
“I try to make them happy as much as I could,” Teklit said.
