Goodwill Mission Stories

After serving in the U.S. Navy as a much younger man, Roosevelt had fallen on hard times later in life and was nearing retirement age with no job, no savings and no hope.

Rebekah was not always the exuberant and confident young woman we know today. With the challenges of a developmental disability and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), along with knowing that the services that she received in high school wouldn’t follow her after graduation, Rebekah was unsure of her path. 

When the Goodwill Workforce Connection Center needed to recruit a new employee to help job seekers find employment, they found exactly what they were looking for in Michael. A young man with a developmental disability and speech impairment, Michael was already a part of the Goodwill family, having been involved with Goodwill’s EmpowerOne program.

Before coming to Goodwill, Theresa would describe herself as financially, spiritually and emotionally bankrupt. After spending 25 years in and out of jail, with a total of nine incarcerations, Theresa knew that the road to a better life was going to be long, and she wasn’t sure where to start. She didn't think anyone would give her a job or a second chance.

Delaney wasn’t always the strong, independent woman she is today. After graduating from high school in inner-city Chicago, she was eager to start her first year of college but quickly dropped out after substance abuse problems took control of her life.

Faced with poverty and limited career options, Mirabel left her home in the Republic of Cameroon in West Africa, with only her faith and hope for a better life for her family. Mirabel arrived in the United States with her husband in 2016 on a visa, as a part of the U.S. Department of State Diversity Lottery. Upon arrival in the United States, finding employment was her number one priority. With communications challenges and little time to adjust to life on a new continent, Mirabel was uncertain where to turn.

With gang violence and crime in her neighborhood, Christine knows the importance of making good choices, given the harsh realities of the world around her. Having lost a brother to a brain aneurism and with a second brother estranged from the family due to alcohol, Christine relies on the support and encouragement of her mother and father to seek out better options.

Taking Ownership of Tasks

Mikayla’s first rotation was in the Aquatic and Reptiles Center. She was very thorough when performing her tasks and took ownership of them. Her tasks included cleaning the cricket bins, harvesting and hatching brine-shrimp (sea monkeys), preparing lizard and tortoise salads, and cutting fish for the Amazon River tank and Pacific tank.
The manager, Billie, mentioned on more than one occasion how helpful it is to have an intern there, especially when they are short-staffed.