JCCOA Warm Hearts Winter 2025-2026 Fundraising Campaign (Chester Sixma & Alice Wilt)
JCCOA Warm Hearts
Winter 2025-2026 Fundraising Campaign
Chester Sixma and Alice Wilt
Campaign: Warm Hearts: JCCOA Seniors Who Kindle Our Community’s Spirit
Call to Action: Learn More. Join Us. Give
Always There
Home health aide Alice Wilt has been Chester Sixma’s steady support for years, showing how JCCOA caregivers help seniors stay safe, connected, and never alone.
Across Jefferson County, home health aides quietly bring comfort, stability, and dignity to seniors who can no longer safely live alone. Every day, they step through front doors with gentle consistency- cleaning apartments, doing dishes, making beds, doing laundry, preparing meals, and offering essential personal care such as bathing, grooming, and dressing. These everyday acts, though simple, help seniors feel secure, respected, and supported in their own homes.
For 69-year-old Chester Sixma, that steady support comes from his longtime home health aide, Alice Wilt, who has been with him for about three years. Alice was originally asked just to “check on him,” but from the first visit she recognized that Chester was someone she wanted to stand by. “Me and Chester are buddy-buddies,” she says with affection. Chester, who lives at The Towers, depends on home-delivered lunches and on Alice’s calm, reliable presence. His opinion of her is straightforward: “She’s a good woman– A-plus.”
Chester isn’t alone in relying on JCCOA at The Towers. When asked how many of his neighbors receive services, he answered simply, “Good many.” For those not yet connected, he offers clear encouragement: “Call them up, see if you can get help.”
A few months ago, that help, and the resilience of the entire community, proved essential. A severe storm tore the roof off The Towers, flooding Chester’s fifth-floor apartment. “I had an inch of water,” he recalls. He lost his bed, mattress, and furniture. In those first chaotic hours, the landlord responded quickly, arranging temporary motel rooms for displaced residents. Both Chester and Alice praised that fast action, which gave everyone space to regroup while JCCOA stepped in with meals, clothing, and ongoing support.
Alice did what she always does: she made sure Chester was okay. When she saw the damage online, she immediately called to learn where he’d been moved. The next morning, she contacted JCCOA so he could be brought in for breakfast and lunch. Moments like these reveal the strength of the network sustaining seniors- landlords, staff and especially aides like Alice- who stayed watchful so no one faces crisis alone.
Alice’s commitment began long before she joined JCCOA. After caring for family members who eventually passed, she found she couldn’t simply stay at home. “I helped him. I can help somebody else,” she remembers. She applied to JCCOA, received a call three days later, and has been caring for seniors ever since. She now supports multiple clients and often fills in on weekends. She doesn’t sugarcoat the work: “If you’re not gonna be dedicated, this just ain’t for you….. because some of these people don’t have family.”
That dedication has carried her through some of Chester’s toughest periods. He has battled COVID, faced hospitalizations, lost significant weight, and was at one point unexpectedly transferred to a hospital in Berryville. Alice checked on him constantly until she confirmed where he was. “When they get sick, it’s stressful,” she admits. “It worries you as you get close to them.”
JCCOA’s broader team supports these moments too. When Chester lost his Medicaid due to age, their nurse came the very same day. “They did not hesitate,” Alice says. “They said, ‘Hey we’re going to roll you into this program,’ and he wouldn’t lose service with us.”
Beyond daily care, the center prepares seniors for challenges long before they arise. Before winter storms, staff assemble Blizzard Bags- weeklong supplies of nutrient-dense food and essentials like toiletries, powdered milk, canned meats, and vegetables. During the COVID shutdowns, when seniors were fearful and isolated, staff continued reporting to the building. Aides delivered meals, called every senior more frequently, and left supplies on porches to ensure no one went without support.
Funding has tightened in recent years. Grants and donations have both declined, but the heart of the work remains strong. Alice keeps showing up, year after year, guided by her belief that seniors deserve to be remembered and cared for. “I just love helping them…..when you get older, you’re forgotten about, and I don’t like that part of it. We got to keep them going.”
On her arms, she carries the symbols of her calling: a blessing on one side and a caregiver’s heart on the other. For Chester and so many others across Jefferson County, that calling is the quiet force that makes sure they never face life’s storms alone.