Alicia’s life turned upside down when she left an abusive relationship. She and her 7-year-old son didn’t have a home, and she didn’t know what to do next. Every day was a battle to find a safe place to sleep and enough food to get through the day. Alicia wanted to take care of her […]
Alicia’s Journey: Turning Struggle into Strength Read More »
Jean-Paul said his life was “unpredictable” before he came to Goodwill. “There were good days, and bad days. It was quiet and some days, life was all over the place.” He didn’t have a routine, so it was hard for him to stay organized. Things changed when Jean-Paul joined Goodwill’s Supported Employment program. He learned
Jean-Paul Found Routine and Purpose Working at Goodwill Read More »
On January 19, we celebrate Founder’s Day—a day to honor Edgar J. Helms, the man who started Goodwill in 1902. Helms believed in giving people “a chance, not charity.” His idea has helped millions of people around the world. Helms was born in a logging camp on January 19, 1863. He dreamed of becoming a politician or journalist,
Everyone Can Make a Difference Read More »
Johnny’s life was hard for a long time. He struggled with addiction and made choices that led to trouble with the law. He was homeless for a long time. Each day he could only focus on survival. A better future felt out of reach. He didn’t have a safe place to live, and he felt
Johnny’s New Path to Success Read More »
Name has been changed at the request of the employee to maintain anonymity. A few years ago, Vivian’s life looked very different. She was struggling with an addiction and had lost her children. She felt stuck in a dark place and didn’t know how to move forward, so she decided to go to treatment. “The best thing I ever did was go
Vivian’s New Chance at Life Read More »
Before coming to Goodwill, Brianna’s life was filled with challenges. She struggled with addiction, which led her to find herself in and out of jail. Each time she tried to start over, the cycle of addiction and the difficult lifestyle that came with it pulled her back down. She wanted to change, but she didn’t
Brianna’s Journey to Finding Freedom from Addiction Read More »
Losing someone you love is very hard and can cause deep sadness or lead a person to lose motivation for life. That’s what was happening in Brandon’s life. He was struggling with depression after losing his sister to suicide. Without her, he felt confused and abandoned. They had been living together when she passed away,
Grief to Goodness: How Brandon Found Independence and Joy Read More »
For Valarie, Goodwill has been more than a workplace—it’s been a place of new beginnings and second chances. Valarie grew up facing many challenges. Her parents divorced when she was young, and she eventually went to live with her grandparents. Later in life, she struggled with addiction, and lost contact with her mother. Eventually, Valarie
Valarie’s Story: Finding Family and A Home at Goodwill Read More »
Before working with Goodwill, Gary was out of a job and struggling to find direction. Each day felt the same, and he began to believe he wasn’t making a difference in the world. On top of that, Gary was dealing with health challenges that made it hard to stay motivated. He felt isolated, unsure of
Gary’s Journey of Confidence and Connection Read More »
Nelish started at Goodwill just four months ago, but he’s already made a strong impression. Before joining the team, he worked with a WFS case manager for almost a year to find employment. But they struggled to find him a job. When a position opened in the Goodwill store, his case manager asked the store
Nelish Found His Place at Goodwill Read More »
Josh first came to Goodwill in 2014 through Vocational Rehabilitation, where he started job training. He had been in other programs in high school, but Goodwill was different. It gave him his first opportunity to earn a paycheck. He worked as a participant at Goodwill until 2020. When the pandemic started, he had to find
Josh’s Journey: Participant to Job Coach Read More »
Living without a home often feels lonely and scary. Those are the words Annalisa chose to describe what her life was like when she was homeless. When she came to Goodwill for help it was the middle of winter, the hardest time of the year to be homeless. Not only was she dealing with the
Overcoming Homelessness: Annalisa’s Path to Safety and Success Read More »
Being homeless for a night is scary enough but imagine what it would be like to be homeless for almost 2,000 nights. That was the reality for Denise, who lived without a home for five years. She described her life as “a living nightmare” that was “mentally, emotionally, and physically exhausting, depressing, and hopeless.” Overwhelmed
Five Years Homeless to Forever Housed: Denise’s Story of Transformation Read More »
Destiny was emotionally drained, living in her car with her husband, two dogs, and one cat. She couldn’t get her husband to help with their situation, which left her feeling scared and alone. She was looking for resources and applying to different places to live, but none of her efforts were working. Because she was
Destiny Renewed Her Hope with Goodwill’s Veteran Program Read More »
Justin had a hard time managing his money on his own. He would spend all of his money all at once, which caused him to be late on his bills. He was in constant stress and felt unstable. That all changed when Justin connected with Goodwill’s Representative Payee Services program. With the support he received,
Finding Financial Peace Through the Goodwill Payee Program Read More »
For much of her life, Trisha was caught in the cycle of addiction, homelessness, brief recovery, then relapse. She was living on the streets and doing whatever it took to survive. Treatment centers helped while she was there, but without a place to live, or any income, she would struggle again after getting out. But
Trisha’s Journey: Breaking the Cycle of Addiction and Homelessness Read More »
Pictured: DC Fast Charger – $0.42/kWh, and L2 Charger – $0.28/kWh Thanks to the Avista Corporation, Goodwill’s South Hill store (2927 E. 27th Ave) is now home to two public EV charging stations. Shoppers can now charge their vehicles while looking for good deals, making this the location of the 22nd DC fast charger Avista
Charge While You Thrift: EV Charging Now Available at South Hill Goodwill Read More »
When Mark first came to Goodwill, life was really tough. He had just had back surgery but did not have a home, so he was discharged to the streets. Before that, he had a small place, but it wasn’t big enough for him, his wheelchair, and his partner. Because of the situation, he didn’t qualify
A Veteran and His Forever Home Read More »
Before coming to Goodwill, Deborah was in a very hard and unsafe situation. She had been in a relationship where she was treated badly, both mentally and physically. During this time, she spent some time in jail and later went to treatment to get help for addiction. After she became clean and sober, Deborah knew
A New Life and New Purpose for Deborah Read More »
Christopher was enjoying life working at and living on a farm, and then one day the farm was sold. He had no place to go, the farm was his home. Camping became his only option, but that was scary. Soon he decided to try out living in a shelter, and that worked out for a
Finding Home Again: One Veteran’s Story of Hope Through SSVF Read More »
Goodwill has a special program to help you get training for a better job. It’s designed for people who want to learn new skills but don’t have the time or money to go to college. With funding from Google.org, Goodwill can offer free online classes for Google Certifications in Project Management, IT Support, IT Automation,
Training for the Future — Thanks to Google and Goodwill Read More »
It’s scary to not know what tomorrow will be like when you are homeless. Will you have a place to sleep? And where? These were the thoughts in Kerry’s mind when he, his fiancée, and their baby daughter were homeless. Without jobs, a car, or a place to live, they felt like life couldn’t get
Kerry’s Family, Once Homeless, Now Together in Their Own Home Read More »
There was a time when Jennifer didn’t know how she was going to be able to pay her next month’s rent. She was stuck in a time of deep struggle, and everywhere she looked for help didn’t work. “I was one foot away from being homeless again,” she said. She has been let down too
Jennifer’s Story: From No Confidence to Pride in Her Journey Read More »
Before coming to Goodwill, life was pretty quiet for Jeffrey, and honestly, kind of boring. There wasn’t much to look forward to each day. But that all changed when he got a job at Goodwill through the Medicaid Supported Employment program. Now, he gets to work with others and feels like part of a team.
Goodwill: The Community and Purpose that Jeffrey Needed Read More »
Tony has worked at Goodwill for over 10 years. In that time, he has learned many life skills and made strong friendships. But life wasn’t always like this for him. Before joining the DDA program at Goodwill—a program that supports people with developmental disabilities—Tony’s days were quiet. He didn’t have many chances to be independent.
Tony’s Decade of Growth and Belonging Read More »
At the beginning of the year, Timothy had to leave his home with his three-year-old daughter after his significant other became violent. He left in that person’s car but because that car was not his, he had to return it. That left him without any transportation. So, he went to a
A Fresh Start: How Goodwill Helped Timothy Rebuild His Life Read More »
Michael had been living at a halfway house for over a month when he came to Goodwill’s Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) in July 2024. Before this he had been incarcerated and did not know where to look for help at first, because he had very limited resources. But he knew that he needed
Living with a disability can be hard. It can hold you back in many ways and make it difficult to do things like find a job. This is what Shawna was experiencing when she came to Goodwill. She has Dyslexia, a disability that makes it hard to read and write. It made staying with a
When Dreams Come True: Goodwill Helped Shawna Live the Life She Wanted Read More »
Lost in the search for work Have you ever been without a job and didn’t know where to look for one? The process to get a job can feel hard. Sometimes you don’t know what kind of job you want, or what kind of job you have the skills for. And sometimes you struggle to
Fernando Found Work, Stability, and Family Read More »
