#Powerofajob: Older job seeker discovers “it’s not over” when you lose your job

Welcome to Workforce Wednesday!

The Employment Security Department is a partner in Washington’s WorkSource system and the American Job Center Network. We help people — unemployed or not — find new jobs and learn new skills. We help them experience the life-changing Power of a Job.

Every week, we spotlight a different Power of a Job success story. This week, we bring you Marsha Ives, an older job seeker who learns at WorkSource that “It’s not over” when you’re older and you lose your job. At WorkSource, Marsha learns new skills and discovers opportunities she had never before considered.

I came to WorkSource because I had a job for a very long time in a man’s world, and now I’m an older woman. I took a couple of WorkSource computer classes, which taught me at least how to get an email! And the Strategies for Success [life-skills class series] has been awesome, because now I’m thinking about possibly being an advocate for children or the elderly — something I’m really passionate about but never thought about doing for a living.

I took some skill assessments at WorkSource, which was awesome. I learned that some things I might really be good at! And I learned why it’s not over when you’re my age and you lose your job.

WorkSource is awesome. There are great people who work here. I would recommend it. I took the classes, learned how to look for a job, write a resume; I had never written a resume in my life and had no idea! I had heard the word, but didn’t know what it really entailed.

I would definitely recommend WorkSource.

Originally published at washingtonesd.wordpress.com on August 1, 2018.