The Home Care Association of America (HCAOA) announced their five finalists and 16 seminfinalists for the 2026 Caregiver of the Year Award, including two All Ways Caring HomeCare caregivers.
This year, HCAOA received 259 nominations for the 2026 Caregiver of the Year Award! Each nominee represents the heart and soul of the home care industry – bringing comfort, dignity, and quality care to every client they serve. Their hard work and dedication make a meaningful difference every day to seniors, people with disabilities, and every person they care for at home. We are proud to recognize the exceptional work they do!
All Ways Caring HomeCare Semifinalists – Northern Tier Region
Alisha Broenneke
Caregiver – Lewiston, ID
Alisha’s impact on her clients and their families is unmatched. Her most recent client suffers from dementia, and the client knows that when Alisha is there, she is safe, and everything is going to be okay. Alisha helps her client with baking cookies as it’s always been a passion for her. The joy she brings to her current client has brought vitality to one who was once afraid of going out of her own home. She regularly goes places with Alisha, exploring the world and visiting the office to share the freshly baked cookies. She is a fierce champion and protector if she feels her client’s needs are not being properly met.
In the five years she has worked for All Ways Caring, Alisha has shown dedication to her clients that is unmatched by many of her peers. She goes above and beyond for her clients. When her most recent client received more hours, she stepped up to work six days a week until a suitable caregiver could be found to care for the client on Saturdays. Her compassion for her clients is evident in the way she cares for them, protects them, and champions them. And her respect for them goes beyond the basic respect of a caregiver for her client – she sympathizes with them, allows them to be who they are, to live their lives in a way that makes them feel safe, comfortable and, of course, happy in their own home.
Alisha’s clients have said she puts the ‘all ways’ in All Ways Caring and one even said she makes the best PB&Js. Of all her strengths, Alisha shines when she has end-of-life clients, especially those who suffer from Alzheimer’s and dementia. Her dedication to her clients can be seen when she worked with a hospice client who suffered from dementia. To ensure the client was able to live at home in his last few months of life, she worked overnight shifts into mornings, taking only enough time to go home and sleep before doing it all over again. It was due to her unwavering dedication and compassion that that client was able to remain at home with his family beside him for those last days.
Jeremiah Gilfoy
Caregiver – Silverdale, WA
Jeremiah is the epitome of “can do.” When he was three months old, he suffered a stroke that affected his right arm, leaving it paralyzed. Jeremiah’s heart and need to help others is bigger than the medical and physical obstacles he deals with daily. His servant attitude is amazing and rubs off on his clients with oppositional defiance disorder, helping them to learn different ways of coping with stressors. They see him having to do things differently to reach his goals and put those into practice to better their own lives. Jeremiah is always willing to go the extra mile, all while showing true compassion, respect, a great attitude, and empathy to all with a high degree of skill needed to be a caregiver to others.
One of his clients stated, “Jeremiah, I hope you know how powerful your presence is. You bring warmth into my room without even trying. The way you care for me, support me, and show me kindness and it’s something the world desperately needs. You may not always see it, but your strength inspires the people around you more than you realize. You are yourself disabled, as I am, yet you don’t doubt yourself. Your resilience, your heart, and your spirit make you rare. Never forget that. The world can be loud and demanding, but you continue to shine in your own way. And today, I just want you to hear this clearly: you are deeply appreciated.”
Congratulations to all of our 2026 Caregiver of the Year Award nominees, and thank you for all you do to help others live their best lives.
Click here to learn more about the Caregiver of the Year Award, and click here to see the full list of nominees by region.
