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Melinda began participating in the Emerge Program in July of 2010 and ...
then we had the two weeks of
employability skills training which included things like
entrepreneurship, writing resumes, interviewing, things of that nature
Cynthia kept us in line
Cynthia made sure we stayed in check, she definitely, but that's good,
she, they set us up to get ready for the
workforce, you know, you got to be here on time you have to dress appropriately
you have to present yourself properly
Employers certainly tell us that what they'll call the soft skills are extremely important
Then they had six weeks of on-the-job training
and that was really a challenge 'cause a lot of them had never worked before, for some it was the
first time they had worked.
and one it's not for full-time employees, and ok,
and two,
there's no guarantee
that they keep you, it's only guaranteed eight weeks, two weeks of the training and then six weeks of wherever
you may be placed. And after that six weeks, there's no guarantee of them keeping you
We had a job fair
where employers who had said they were interested in hosting individuals that graduated from the
the two-week employability skills training uh... employers had said, yeah, we will host individuals
and they
told us which jobs
that they were looking to fill, we had job descriptions
As we, as I was interviewing the candidates that stopped at my table and talked to me about what they
wanted to do, Melinda clearly
stood out as being uh... you know uh... a star in that group
especially in having an interest in
technology and IT and
also you know, we don't traditionally have a lot of young ladies who have an interest in
our space
and she was interested, she clearly had some knowledge, she was taking some classes, and so
that process
you know, right from the interview
uh... you know, we hoped that was the one that they would match up with us and ultimately they did.
Travis was, he interviewed me initially and
he just seemed very down-to-earth
he was very just straight to the point, no you know
I didn't feel inferior
at that time, at the interview time I just felt very comfortable with him,
like, you know, cool dude.
She came in
uh... dedicated to the job, dedicated to learning
and really, you know, presented herself as a sponge, in terms of she wanted to gain as much knowledge
as possible
And as I watched her
and came to see her at her workplace
I could see that she was driven, she said my mind is on doing the best that I can do
and other people began to see it, too.
As it so happened we we'd have an opportunity where we needed to add a position
uh... and although Melinda wasn't, you know, quite at the skill set level yet that we
envisioned for that position
we really felt that she would be able to, if she maintained that kind of learning ramp
that she would be able to fill the role. And so we offered her a full-time position,
she accepted and and uh...
you know so far, knock on wood, it's been going pretty well
I love my job. I love my job,
I love Artemis,
uh... anyone here is a team
everyone vibes very well, everyone gets along everyone is willing to help,
everything flows, and it's a challenge, it is a challenge, but it's never a dull moment.
So near the end of the program
there was an opportunity to
honor her
because it was time
where they were asking for candidates
It was a shocker to me, they contacted me and said that the Workforce Board was doing a, I think it was a Superstar Recognition,
Attendance, on time, good customer service skills, had the right attitude, all of the things that make
a success for someone, working hard - she was doing all of these things
we were fortunate that we had
the right opportunity for someone with the right
skill set
I think it also just plays into the overall community morale in terms of getting people to work
getting them having pride in themselves, you know most people want to be able to provide for themselves and their
family and you know they may not be able to do that if they don't get some sort of assistance
in strengthening in their skill set
Emerge offered
it showed us that
we're able to help, we are able to contribute to the community
We have it in us, we have the potential regardless of your age,
your race, your
marital status or just your where you live, or how your grew up,
how many children you have, regardless
of how hard your life may be
you have the potential to be something greater and to potentially help others in the process
I saw people in there that I've known prior to, some people I didn't know, my age group,
but it changed them.
It did change them, it gave them a whole different outlook on life
that you know there are opportunities out there, there are people out there that care
and want us to succeed, and want us to better for us, and our families and generations to come,
they were that stepping stone for us.