David was incarcerated for 14 years at the Airway Heights Correctional Facility. At the time of his incarceration, David’s partner was pregnant. He didn’t get to build a strong relationship with his son after he was born. His son’s mother was reluctant to bring him to the correctional facility to visit David. As David’s son got older, things changed. His son needed to know who his father was and build a connection. So, in the last few years of David’s incarceration, his son visited.
The journey begins
So David put in a written request to visit Goodwill. Once he was approved, he went to Goodwill and connected with the Career and Resource Center specialist. The specialist discovered what David needed: a job and an education. So the specialist worked with David to get him set up for Coding Dojo classes. Then the specialist helped David prepare for potential job interviews. Each time David visited the Career and Resource Center, he was given a quiet space to focus on his classes and video interviews for jobs.
After an interview with a fitness center, he got offered a personal trainer position and accepted it. David was thrilled to finally have a paying job. This was another achievement for him as he worked toward a better life. But he was concerned about how he was going to get to and from work. And he was concerned about how he was going to pay for his uniforms.
Discovering more support
The Career and Resource Center specialist eased his worries and told him about other services that Goodwill offers to help people. Then Goodwill helped David pay for a part of his work uniforms. And Goodwill supplied bus passes so he could get to work, go to more job interviews, take part in classes and meetings in the community, and strengthen the bonds with his son.
So he started working on the weekends while continuing his coding classes. Then David got offered a night supervisor position at a steel manufacturing facility. He felt he was on the right track to better his life. He stayed busy working two jobs and going to classes to get his software engineering certification. But he wanted time to spend with his son and build a stronger relationship.
Hard work pays off
David’s hard work paid off and he got his certification in software engineering and is working toward his bachelor’s degree in computer science. He was asked by his teacher to become a teacher’s assistant for the program. This would allow David to have more time on the weekends to spend with his son. So he accepted the offer. He gracefully left his position at the fitness center. Now he spends time with his son on the weekends and can attend his son’s sporting and school events.
David is thankful for the help he got from Goodwill. He is grateful that there is help without judgment for people in his situation. He has made leaps and bounds from when he was first released from the correctional facility. He said, “Without Goodwill, I would be struggling to find work, complete my Coding Dojo, and strengthen my relationship with my teenage son.” David is excited to apply his new-found knowledge and his earlier experience in manufacturing and process management to his new manufacturing position. He is also excited to help others advance their software engineering careers.