Stories
December 7, 2016
Nate is a participant in Goodwill’s Supported Employment Work Program. While in the program, he worked on job searching and improving the skills he would need to be successful in community employment.
Through Goodwill’s Supported Employment Work Program, Nate applied for different jobs and attended various job interviews with the support of Goodwill staff. In September 2020, Nate was hired at Home Depot as a Lot Associate. Nate likes his schedule and the work of bringing carts in and helping to load vehicles.
"My co-wokers at Home Depot are vey nice and help me out a lot". ~Nate
Congratulations Nate! All of us at Goodwill are proud of you!
October 26, 2016
Miriam came to the Goodwill Resource Room for assistance in finding employment. She had taken some time off work to take care of her child and was now ready to get back to work and was looking for resources to help her land a job.
Miriam's primary language is Spanish and at times it is hard for her to understand English. Goodwill's Resource Room Specialist was able to help Miriam create a resume and apply for jobs online. Miriam also attended many hiring events that took place in the Resource Room, including the Randstad hiring event.
The Randstad Site Manager was impressed with Miriam's work ethic and hired her. She is working for the Target Distribution Center and so happy to be back to work using her skills and learning new ones.
October 26, 2016
Michael was a participant in Goodwill's Supported Employment Program in Rockford. While in the program, he worked very hard at improving his employment skills and focused on job searching.
Through Goodwill's Supported Employment Program, Michael researched and applied for various jobs, but his dream was to work in the arcade and video game industry. In July 2020, Michael applied, interviewed and was hired at Tilted 10 at the CherryVale Mall.
Michael cleans the arcade games for customers and does a great job making sure all games are in working order for everyone to enjoy.
"I love working here because I know a lot about video games. This is what I want to do" ~ Michael
Keep up the great work Michael! All of us at Goodwill are so proud of you!
October 26, 2016
"I dropped out of school in 8th grade so I could work in the family restaurant. Since I have attended GoodGRADS, I have learned more in the last couple months than I ever have in the past! I like how dedicated the teachers are and how much fun it is coming to class.
Along with school, I work a labor intensive job. Some days I work 14 hours, get two hours of sleep and I still come to class. I had perfect attendance in school for my first session. I have also been coming in during the school breaks for tutoring because of how important it is to me.
I want to obtain my GED so that I can pursue different job opportunities."
October 26, 2016
"GoodGRADS has helped me tremendously with my English, grammar, and math skills as well as transportation and other case management issues. Their help and attention has increased my Math and Reading skills. In addition to these gains, I am also proud of my perfect attendance!
When asked how I managed to have 16 weeks of perfect attendance, I said that I am determined that I want to learn, I just made up in my mind that I was going to do this. When I am done with my GED, I want to eventually become a drug counselor to help others."
October 20, 2016
Zach works at the Goodwill store in McHenry, IL. He's a great worker and always wants to learn new tasks and help his teammates out. One of Zach's main tasks is to sort, tag, and price belts and ties. He also works on the sales floor organizing the belts and ties and making the displays look neat. He is very detailed in his work and enjoys making sure every item he puts on the sales floor is appropriate.
Recently, Zach met his employment goals and was moved into the Transition Phase of the program. His Job Coach started going over interview questions with him and worked on his resume. Zach applied to JC Penny and got hired in the men's department working as a Sales Associate! He works 18 hours a week and he enjoys learning new tasks and having extra spending money. Nice job, Zach!
October 20, 2016
Miracle was a participant in Goodwill's Rockford area Supported Work Program. While in the program, she worked very hard at improving her work skills and focused on job searching. When Miracle was in high school, she completed a food preparation course with hands-on experience at a nursing home, which she really loved.
Through Goodwill's Supported Work Program, Miracle applied for different jobs and attended various job interviews, but always had her experience at the nursing home in the back of her mind. In March 2020, Miracle applied, interviewed and was hired at a local retirement home center as a dietary aide.
Miracle started her job at the health center during a very challenging time with Covid-19 and quickly learned the required safety precautions of being an essential worker. Currently, she is really enjoying prepping food and drinks for the residents.
"It has always been a passion of mine to work in dietary at a nursing home and my dream has come true!" ~Miracle