Charles C. - An Older Worker Success Story

Senior Community Service Employment Program Participant, Charles Coggin. He is smiling, standing in front of a temporary housing unit, at his new job. He's wearing a hat, sunglasses, a blue t-shirt, jeans, and a watch.

Introduction

Charles C. entered our Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP) in February of 2020. At the time, he was unemployed and living out of his car with no income. Our Senior Community Service Employment Program assists individuals who are over the age of 55, in these situations, by providing them paid internships/placements at our partner organizations while they build modernized job-skills in real-world situations. Charles was placed in a training assignment at The Nancy Devereux Center - an organization that helps provide resources to the homeless, as well as people with mental disabilities.

Discovering a New Passion

Charles began his Community Service Assignment training by sorting incoming donations; and due to his hard work ethic and willingness to learn as much as he could, his training qucikly shifted to the front desk where he checked in clients and helped get them signed up for daily services. When the city approved the Devereux Center’s plan of building a Community Campground to serve as transitional housing, they offered Charles a full-time, unsubsidized position as a site monitor. This transition from training positions to full-time employment is the end-goal for SCSEP, so we were elated to hear this news from Charles!
“I never knew how much I wanted to help people, until I started helping people,” Charles said.

Conclusion

Since entering our program, Charles has also been able to improve his living situation by getting a room at a boarding house, providing him safe and stable housing while he focuses on his new career. Over the course of 16 months, Charles was able to completely change his life by putting in the effort to train and grow his skills with the help of our program and our partners at the Nancy Devereux Center.
“For someone 55 and over, it can be hard to obtain employment and that’s what y’all specialize in doing. It helped me; it works. I’d recommend it for anybody that’s needing any modern training, any updates on anything - they’re phenomenal about helping you do that.”
We're so ecstatic that we were able to be a helping hand in your success and your new-found passion for helping others, Charles!

If you or anyone you know is a mature job-seeker (over the age of 55), please contact us here for more information on how we can help!

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