CHR Profile - Winey West, Community Health Representative, Creek Nation

Winey West was raised in Holdenville, OK. She is a Seminole and belongs to the Wind Clan. Winey has 3 children and 10 grandchildren. Her hobbies are spending time with her grandchildren and attending their sporting events.

In her short time as a CHR (about 15 months) Winey has been an outstanding example of what a CHR should be. She goes above and beyond her duties as a CHR to help people who are in need of medical care or who just need someone to talk to. Winey is a very humble person who puts her patients’ health care and needs first. Her response to recognition is always "I didn't do it, it was God who worked through me."

We are pleased in this first NACHR Newsletter CHR Profile to honor and acknowledge Ms. Winey West, Community Health Representative (CHR), serving the Creek Nation in Oklahoma. Ms. West’s bravery and quick actions saved the lives of two Creek Nation elders and a child in the December 2005 wildfires in Oklahoma. Her story is a testimony to her heroism and illustrates the generosity and courage of CHRs.

On December 27, 2005, Winey West was on leave from her CHR duties when she heard on the radio that fires had broken out near her home near Holdenville, Oklahoma. She knew the local geography enough to know that several of her elder clients would be in harm’s way.

Putting aside her personal safety and the threat to her own home, Ms. West immediately went to the home of a Creek Nation elder who was caring for a young grandson. When she arrived, the fire was already within only a few yards of the home. Though the elder suffered from arthritis and poor mobility, Ms. West stayed calm and was able to help the elder and grandson to the safety of her car. The home burned to the ground.

Her next stop was at the home of an elder minister who was fighting the fire around his home when she arrived. Despite her pleas for him to leave with her, he stayed behind--and sadly, later died of a heart attack.

An outbuilding near the woman’s home had already been consumed by fire when Ms. West arrived to rescue her next elderly client. The woman was helped to safety by Ms. West and joined the other evacuees. Had she not been stopped by law enforcement roadblocks, Ms. West would have attempted additional rescues.

After the fires had spread away from Ms. West’s property and were no longer a threat, she took everyone home with her. She notified the displaced elders’ family members of their safety and location and made pickup arrangements for them.

Ms. West’s concern for her clients prompted heroic actions above and beyond her duties. She was recognized for her valor at the 2006 Triennial with a specially designed candle stone presented by the National CHR Program.

We applaud her heart, spirit and determination!  Thank you Winey West!

There’s More to the Story
The weekend following the Holdenville wildfires, Winey and her daughter were driving her niece to the hospital in Ada, OK. Her niece was in labor and the baby must have known that Winey just needed a little more excitement so it decided to be born--then. Winey pulled to the side of the highway, called 911, and they talked her through the process of delivering a baby. When she couldn’t find anything to tie the cord with, her daughter offered her shoelace, which did the job. By the time the ambulance arrived, everything had been taken care of. Winey is very proud of the result of this adventure--a six pound baby girl who is also her great niece.