Success through Hard Work
“Everyone has to start somewhere,” said Andri.
Andri, a high school senior, has a great sense of understanding that entry-level work is a starting point and a stepping stone to something bigger and better. He said, “I plan to have other jobs, but I need to start here and work my way up through life because that’s what you do.”
Over the 2016 summer, Andri took part in the Goodwill Summer Work Experience & Assessment, also known as SWEAP. This program gives teens and young adults with disabilities, between the ages of 16 and 21, the opportunity to gain real-world work experience and earn their first paychecks. 107 participants received paid job training at Reading High School, Goodwill Stores and Donation Centers and other local businesses.
Through SWEAP, Andri, who is deaf, worked at Reading High School. Along with his job coach and other SWEAP participants, he completed a variety of tasks like painting, fixing desks and chairs and detail cleaning.
His job coach Robin Shingle said, “Andri was able to help his work group come together. Andri knows English, Spanish and sign language. He translated or interpreted for others and it helped everyone gel together.”
He said, “When I was little, I didn’t know any language and I was frustrated because I couldn’t communicate what I wanted or needed.” At a young age, his mom enrolled him in a school for the deaf and hard of hearing. It was there that he began to learn how to communicate though signing, reading and talking. “I know what it’s like not to be understood, so I like to help others.”
Andri has his sights on college and would like to attend college to study fields that relate to media, communications and graphic design.
As he begins his high school senior year, Andri is already planning to save money for graduation and help his family. He noted, “I plan to find another job and work throughout the school year.”
He said, “A lot of people want to be famous. I don’t need to be famous; I need to be successful. And you do that through hard work.”
For more information about Goodwill’s programs and services, contact Sue Soderberg
ssoderberg@yourgoodwill.org
717.394.0647
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