For years, Sally referred people to Goodwill for help with their job searches. Never did the Kings Mountain resident think one day she’d be the one looking for help.
“I had a job. I thought I was all set. No need to update my resume,” Sally says, reflecting on her job of nearly 10 years with a community outreach organization.
Everything changed when Sally found herself in a similar predicament to the people she’d once served—unemployed. Within hours of finding out her job had been eliminated, Sally called the same place where so many of her clients had found success: Goodwill’s Gaston County Job Connection.
Sally treated unemployment like a full-time job, visiting the Job Connection nearly every day. She describes the job resource center as a “real eye-opener.”
“I didn’t have adequate computer skills. I was stuck in the Windows 97 era. I hadn’t updated a resume in 10 years and I hadn’t interviewed in 10 years,” Sally recalls.
She enrolled in a four-week basic computer skills training class, and sought assistance from a Goodwill career counselor for help updating her resume. With no computer or Internet access at home, she utilized Job Connection computers for the job search.
“Goodwill gave me a chance to update my skills and the knowledge and confidence to present myself well to an employer,” Sally says.
To keep her work experience current, Sally also volunteered at the Job Connection, which allowed her to improve her customer service skills and put her updated computer skills to work.
One year and about 100 applications later, Sally’s job search ended when she landed a job with the Employment Security Commission. There, she helps people file their unemployment claims.
“When people at the unemployment office say ‘It’s just hard to find a job right now,’ I completely understand what they’re going through. I am a little closer to it since I’ve been there,” Sally says. “I just try to create a positive atmosphere and am trying to change the stereotype of the mean, old unemployment office that will turn you down.”
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