Joan Horwood, BN, RN is the heartbeat behind Horwood’s Home Care.  Raised in the Town of Twillingate, she attended Memorial University in 1970 and graduated with a Bachelor of Nursing in 1975.  Upon graduation, Joan began her nursing career in her home Town of Twillingate as a Staff Nurse at the Notre Dame Bay Memorial Health Centre and in 1981 was offered the Nurse Manager position which she held for the next 14 years.  Joan’s personal experience of loss with the death of her father motivated her to lead the development of a Palliative Care program in Twillingate and work continually on improving quality to ensure that the program excelled and obtained its accreditation.  It was a great source of pride that Notre Dame Bay Memorial Health Centre was the first rural hospital in Newfoundland to have such a program.  In 1995, as a result of government restrictions in Health Care, Joan’s position as Nurse Manager became redundant.

Joan secured employment as a Continuing Care Nurse Coordinator in a casual position for Grand Falls-Windsor, Bishop’s Falls and Botwood area and later accepted a full-time position as Public Health Nurse for the areas of Botwood and Peterview.  This Public Health Nurse position opened Joan’s eyes to the needs of our most vulnerable individuals and their families. The federal government at that time acknowledged her service delivery areas/towns as one of the regions eligible for funding under the Community Action Program for Children (CAPC).  Joan worked closely with the Exploits Valley Community Coalition and was successful in securing funding under this program.

As a Public Health Nurse, Joan had the opportunity to participate in multiple community programming initiatives.  One of the programs offered under the CAPC funding was Healthy Baby Club.  Joan, along with the support of her managers, networked with the Exploit Valley Community Coalition and applied for an Infant Daycare for the Botwood High School with the daycare being located in the Pentecostal Sunday School.  This project was a huge success and four young moms and their babies enrolled.  Joan considers this accomplishment as one of the highlights of her nursing career as four young moms now had the opportunity to finish school.  One of these young moms was the first in her family to have completed high school.  Families have always been important in the quality of lives of all children and Joan found it very rewarding to be able to contribute to the positive life improvement of these four young families.

Another of Joan’s interests was Oncology and with some reluctance, she left her Public Health Nurse position to accept the position as Oncology Nurse Manager at the Central East and West Cancer Clinic; a position she held until her retirement in 2006. This position not only enhanced her management skills but broadened her perspective on those facing health challenges. The experience allowed her to assist people in dealing with sickness and often death.  Joan has maintained her interest and involvement in palliative care through her active role from her time on the Board of Directors with the Provincial Palliative Care Association for NL.

Simply stated, Joan’s passion has always been to help those in need.  Her nursing career was an avenue for her to be able to realize that passion.  She served the community with her knowledge, skills, experience and compassion for 30 years before retiring.  She feels immense gratitude for her career choices and the many opportunities to positively impact the lives of numerous people.

Upon retirement from the public sector, Joan began the next phase of her career by implementing her vision of creating a home and community support agency.  In 2006, Joan established Horwood’s Home & Community Support Services Inc. with a focus on community support and support for Child, Youth & Family Services clients.

Their vision has always been to be the provider of choice for those who require assistance while remaining assessable to our staff and clients.  Joan and her team are very committed to abiding by the best practices identified in the companies policy and procedure manual.  Her team wishes to be innovative and work with the best interest of those requiring care in whatever capacity available.

Kira holds the position of Adminstration Assistant for the Baie Verte office. Kira completed her Office of Administration Certificate through Academy Canada in March 2021.

Kira currently lives in Middle Arm with her Fiance, and her kitty Charolette.