Meet The Team | Senior Helpers of Lafayette

Meet the Lafayette office

More than 90% of seniors want to age in their own home with dignity but getting the right type of care can seem daunting. At Senior Helpers Lafayette we believe getting the best care for your loved ones should not be complicated. J’annine Sullivan and Susan Amos purchased the Senior Helpers Lafayette office in 2017 because of their passion for helping others and their interest in the growing need for in-home care services in Acadiana. They are committed to delivering the best possible in-home care to seniors in Lafayette and throughout Acadiana.

"We take in-home care very seriously and make it a priority to provide the highest level of client service possible. Over the past 20 years we have built an excellent reputation in the community. Since taking over the Lafayette office we have developed an exceptional team of care professionals, each committed to remaining at the forefront of the in-home care industry through our proprietary ongoing training and education programs."

Our History

Senior Helpers was founded in 2002 and over the past 13 years has grown to include a network of more than 300 locally owned and operated franchises across the United States. Senior Helpers of Lafayette joined the system in 2007 and underwent a change in ownership in 2017. Like other owners, Jannine Sullivan and Susan Amos are fully-committed to the goal of providing dependable and affordable in-home care with well-trained caregivers. “Nothing is more important to us than providing quality care for our clients and in being the best available resource for seniors and families in our community.”

J’annine Sullivan and Susan Amos were drawn to Senior Helpers because of their love of and experience with the elderly. It was a perfect partnership from the very beginning. J’annine brought her operations and management experience as a field supervisor and Care Manager for 5 Senior Helpers offices in Nashville to the business and focuses on client relations and quality care for their clients. Susan managed and marketed two of the largest in-home care companies in the state for over 20 years. She is well known in the healthcare community with a reputation for ensuring quality care for seniors. Susan and J’annine’s mothers both had Alzheimer’s so they shared a passion and a dream to provide a different homecare experience for their clients and their families. They wanted to provide the type of care that the elderly and disabled deserve and a place where caregivers receive extensive training and feel appreciated. They are dedicated to training caregivers the Senior Helpers way in their state-of-the art simulated training center. “Our caregivers receive hands-on training and we do skills checks. This prepares them to provide the best possible care for our clients.” “We are blessed to have had the opportunity to serve hundreds of seniors in our community and are committed to continuing to provide an uncompromising continuum of care and customer service for years to come.

Our process

The first step in the process is a complimentary, initial in-home care assessment with a Senior Helpers consultant. This assessment can help you understand the true needs of your loved one, and your options. Together we can discuss their needs, our senior care services and determine what’s best for your entire family.

We will cover:

Your family's specific goals

Your loved one's daily plan design and schedule

Pricing and payment methods

Implementation process

Ongoing communication and follow-up plan

Meet the Lafayette Team

J'annine MacDonald Sullivan

Co-Owner/Chief Operating Officer

J'annine began at an early age interested in the health and well being of others. She earned her bachelor's degree in Radiological Technology, certified in MRI, CT and Cardiac Catheterization. After working several years at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, she became a consultant in medical management in the field of imaging, traveling across the United State acquiring or starting imaging centers. Post Katrina, J'annine landed in Lafayette and began following her passion, dying with dignity, and found a career with Senior Helpers as their Director of Operations, focusing on high quality care to those in need. J'annine received her certification in End of Life and became a qualified dementia care specialist with focus on Alzheimer's. As in advocate for those in need, J'annine enjoys meeting with families who need direction and guidance through their final chapter of life. An active volunteer for the Alzheimer's Association, J'annine has served on the advisory board and as an Alzheimer's Ambassador lobbying for well needed funding and awareness for the disease with no cure. Having the opportunity to purchase Senior Helpers allows her to assure the community that their loved one will be provided with the highest quality care, focusing on the care plan. Her goal is to provide caregivers that give loving care for their clients and are not just sitters. J'annine is an avid outdoors woman and enjoys hiking, kayaking and adventure. She has one daughter, Emma who also works at Senior Helpers as a Caregiver when not attending her college classes.

"May we die as we are born, surrounded by love"

Susan Giarratano Amos

Co-Owner/Chief Marketing Officer

Susan Giarratano Amos has been assuring that the elderly and disabled around Acadiana receive compassionate, quality homecare for more than 2 decades. During that time she has worked for 2 of the largest homecare companies in the state and has been responsible for the safety and wellbeing of hundreds of individuals. Ms. Amos's goal has always been to assist the elderly to age with dignity and respect. This experience has prepared Ms. Amos for her current success as co-owner and Director of Sales & Marketing for Senior Helpers. Her passion and dedication for Seniors has been recognized by the community and she has received numerous awards including Marketer of the Year and the Better Business Bureau's Integrity, Ethics and Customer Service Awards. Having cared for so many clients experiencing Alzheimer's disease in addition to losing her mother to the disease, clients with Alzheimer's disease and dementia have a special place in Susan's heart. She has been an advisory board member for the Alzheimer's Association for over 2 years and has been an advocate and volunteer for 8 years. Ms. Amos is a member of the Greater Lafayette Aging District and is a volunteer for the American Cancer Society. She attended UL majoring in Education and is a long-time resident of Lafayette. Susan has 2 children, Joseph and Jennifer, who also works at Senior Helpers as Marketing Coordinator and 4 grandchildren; Loa, Laydon, Abigail and Silas.

Edythe “Edie” Casselman

Operations Director

Edie Casselman comes to Senior Helpers with over 20 years of experience working with the elderly. She has a vast background in working with the senior population that began years ago with the startup and implementation of a senior program through a local hospital. From there she moved into a position with city government, advocating for the elderly. This ultimately led her into a long career in the assisted living environment, where she successfully served as Executive Director for four locally owned assisted living facilities.

Each of these steps in her professional path helped to contribute to her knowledge and love for working with the elderly and their families. Edie’s experiences and the many relationships that she developed along the way helped her to become the person that she is today, both personally and professionally. She thrives on improving the lives of those that she has the privilege of meeting on a daily basis. Edie takes great pride in her position as Operations Manager with Senior Helpers, and strives to honor it with a servant’s heart.

Shyla McDaniel

Human Resources Administrator/Accounting

It takes a very organized person to run our HR department and Shyla is one of the best. She joined our Senior Helpers family and within a few months has provided an organized and efficient department, holding our caregivers to high standards. As HR Administrator, Shyla assures that Senior Helpers is in compliance with DHH regulations and that all caregiver documents are up to date. She oversees the hiring of all Senior Helpers caregivers and the recruitment program. Shyla is a mother of 4 and keeps busy as her husband is often offshore taking care of oil production.

Rebecca Duplechin

RN/Field Supervisor

Rebecca has been a nurse for over 23 years with experience in caring for the elderly. Rebecca’s mission is to provide a safe and caring atmosphere for clients and their families. Each week, you can find Rebecca in the field visiting our clients, updating their care plans and making sure our caregivers are providing the highest quality care. Rebecca is married and has 2 beautiful children.

Jennifer "Jenny" O'Quain

Community Resource Coordinator

Jenny has been promoted to Community Resource Coordinator for Senior Helpers. She is responsible for the creative development of Senior Helper’s marketing campaigns and supports the Chief Marketing Officer in all marketing and community endeavors. Jenny will soon expand her marketing skills to the outlying areas around Lafayette. When not marketing, Jenny attends job fairs seeking quality CNAs and caregivers for Senior Helpers. She recently developed the Senior Helpers activity corner, offering games and activities for our clients. A proud mother of 2 beautiful daughters; Loa and Laydon, Jenny is the daughter of Susan Amos, Co-Owner of Senior Helpers.

Halana Nicholas

HR Assistant/Senior Helper University (SHU) Trainer

Halana is from Breaux Bridge and is one of 6 children, 5 of them being girls! She has 4 amazing kids and is a great mom. She works in our Human Resources Department and is responsible for interviewing, screening and hiring our caregivers. Halana is a CNA and has been a caregiver since 2007. She joined our Senior Helpers family as a caregiver however it was obvious because of her passion for her job that she would be a great mentor and trainer. Halana began mentoring other caregivers and sharing her experience and knowledge with them as part of Senior Helper Lafayette’s Caregiver Mentor Program and is now an instructor for our Senior Helpers University.

Charmaine Moreaux

Scheduler

Charmaine Moreaux worked as a Caregiver for 7 years and loves caring for the elderly. She joined Senior Helpers as a Caregiver in August 2018 but was quickly promoted to a Scheduler. As a scheduler Charmaine works hard to match our clients with appropriate caregivers. To find the right caregiver for a client, schedulers consider the skill level, experience, personality, location and availability of a client. When asked why Charmaine enjoys working for Senior Helpers she said,” This is the best company that I’ve ever worked for. I am lucky to walk into an office filled with positive attitudes and love every day. The owners show us appreciation, and strength. We are a family.” Charmaine loves being a mother to her young daughter, Jhourne Faith Edwards. She is a graduate of Unitech Training Academy where she studied to be a Pharmacy Technician. In addition to working full time with Senior Helpers, Charmaine is studying nursing at SLCC.

Jessica Marks

Scheduler

Jessica Marks worked as a caregiver for over 10 years and has a passion for the elderly. She joined the Senior Helpers family about a year ago and within a short time was noticed for her hard work and dedication and promoted to scheduler. She enjoys her days at Senior Helpers and feels that the owners and staff are like family. Jessica said, “I’ve never worked for a company so passionate and welcoming. The positive attitude and appreciation that we are shown gives me motivation to keep doing a good job.” Jessica is a loving wife and mother of 4 children. She enjoys being a wife and mom and says that her kids and work keep her going and motivated.

Meet the Lafayette office

Our History

Our process

Meet the Lafayette Team

Senior Helpers University

The Lafayette Office

Areas We Serve