WorkSource and SkillSource give mature worker confidence to retrain

It’s Workforce Wednesday and time for another Power of a Job success story from around the state. Today we bring you Debbie Prest, a mature worker with an outdated skill set. With guidance from Wenatchee Valley WorkSource staff and the Wenatchee SkillSource office, Debbie was able to go back to school to update her skills. She also was able to connect with a flexible employer, willing to work around her class schedule. Debbie is well on her way to a new career, with increased confidence in what she is capable of accomplishing!

Here’s her story:

Hi, my name is Debbie. I’m 66 years old and just shortly before my 65th birthday, I was told that I was going to be laid off.

I had worked for that firm for almost 13 years. At my age, I didn’t know where I was going to go. I was concerned that I wouldn’t find a job at all, but I still needed to work because I had debts. So I signed up for unemployment benefits, and on the website, one of the resources was WorkSource.

So I came here and they helped me with seminars and some group work experiences where I learned how to improve my resume and present myself better — just all sorts of things. The people were so encouraging; they told me about other resources, pointed me to SkillSource, where I also found fabulous people who gave me all sorts of great ideas.

They were the ones who said, “You need to retrain. There are no jobs available in your field.” So they helped me find grant money for school, and that’s what I’ve been doing: going to school full time for almost a year now.

Just recently, a local attorney was looking for someone. He contacted me because he found my resume on [WorkSourceWA.com], which I had uploaded here at WorkSource. We talked and he said he was fine with working around my school schedule. So I am now working for him part time.

I always have been encouraged by the people here at WorkSource and at SkillSource. They built my confidence so that I could go out there and find another job. I’m still going to school and will finish my degree in December. I will then be looking for a job in the accounting field.

I cannot stress how much the people at WorkSource and SkillSource have helped and what a difference they’ve made in my life. They not only gave me the tools, but the confidence to go out and do this. I would never have gone to school. I didn’t think I could, but I’m finding that I can! I’m doing amazingly well, I love what I’m learning, and it’s going to lead to a new career for me.

SkillSource (www.SkillSource.org) teaches workplace basics in cooperation with WorkSource, school districts, community colleges and employers. The education and training they provide offers unemployed or low-skilled workers the opportunity to learn the skills employers want. SkillSource has locations in Moses Lake, Omak, Othello and Wenatchee.

As a partner in Washington’s WorkSource system and the American Job Center Network, the Employment Security Department helps people — unemployed or not — find new jobs and learn new skills. We help them experience the life-changing Power of a Job. We also work with businesses, which are Powered by Jobs, to help them find employees.