An employment training program for people who have disabilities or who face barriers to work is now being offered at Goodwill. Participants of the 16-week Goodwill Connect program will receive support while job hunting, as well be connected with mental health, housing, addiction and transportation services. “It’s really helped me feel comfortable with moving forward into a new job,” said a graduate of another Goodwill career program, Adam O’Donnell, at a graduation and ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Whyte Avenue centre on Friday. O’Donnell now works at Edmonton International Airport. “(I feel) understood and that I have this support behind me. If I have a problem, I have somebody that can help me,” he told CTV News Edmonton. Goodwill Connect will be offered in person at Goodwill locations in Edmonton, St. Albert and Sherwood Park, as well as virtually. Participants can refer themselves without needing to provide a diagnosis or other documentation. “(We’ll) make sure we get a big picture of what they’re looking for and then we connect them with one of our career and life coaches, who create an action plan to (achieve) all their goals, and then we start working on achieving those goals,” explained program manager Holly Nibourg. “There’s a lot of people who don’t necessarily need full programming or are not eligible. They just need a little bit of guidance to get started.” If someone is not yet ready for the program, they can still access support. “There’s just barrier upon barrier that people find and we exist to really try to break down as many of those barriers as possible,” said Matt Ashdown, Goodwill’s director of mission impact. The program received a four-year grant worth about $10 million from the provincial government. With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Curtis Goodrum
