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- Lorraine
- Tami
- Kyt
- Cheri
- Mary
- Sara
"My first day at WWEE was the first day of the rest of my life. I learned to
have hope...and I learned to believe in ME." |
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WWEE Success Stories
“I’m smart, I’m strong and I’m beautiful.” Mary is repeating
an exercise she learned from Shelby McCullough, a guest speaker at her REACH (Reaching
Employability & Achieving Career Habits) class. Mary felt awkward and embarrassed as
Shelby insisted she repeat the phrase, over and over. That is, until she looked into
the faces of her classmates. They were beaming back at her with looks of joy and
confidence. It was time to stop listening to the voices that said, “You’re stupid,”
“You’re weak,” “You can’t do anything.”
Before Mary came to WWEE, she had hit a dead end. She was in a bad marriage, she was
unemployed and she had a seven-year-old daughter to support. Mary applied to DSHS for
help with her rent, and it was there that she heard about WWEE. She enrolled in REACH
and attended a very quiet and apprehensive class that first day. After a few days, she
says, “it got pretty loud in there.” Mary, along with many of her classmates, went from
feelings of depression and inadequacy to feelings of confidence and optimism. “Carmen
[Chambers, REACH instructor] is awesome,” Mary said. She helped the students discover
the wisdom, the strength and the beauty that was hiding within. One of the most important
lessons that Mary learned in her REACH class, and one she says she will always carry with
her, is that “Attitude is everything!”
After Mary completed REACH, she enrolled in Computer Applications & Career Development
(CACD). She feels that acquiring computer skills has significantly contributed to her ability
to find a rewarding career. She recently registered with two employment agencies and discovered
her WWEE experience enabled her to achieve high scores on standard skills tests.
Mary began a three-month internship with Catholic Community Services in October. She says
that the career-readiness and computer classes she completed at WWEE, as well as her
experience at CCS, make her competitive for jobs that pay nearly $30,000 a year.
As this newsletter was going to print, Mary called the WWEE office to let us know that she
had been hired by Pacific Foods of Kent as a Customer Care Specialist. The computer skills
and job search strategies she learned in the program were key to her success. At $13 an hour,
Mary will be making nearly twice the minimum wage. There was excitement and joy in her voice.
“I could never have done this without WWEE,” she said.
For the privacy and safety of our participants some names have been changed and some photos have been omitted.
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Copyright© 2007 Washington Women's Employment & Education
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