“TO BE HONEST, I wasn’t sure if Donald would be able to work independently,” Goodwill Job Placement Supervisor Julie Joppie said. “But now he is and doing awesome! He comes into work, clocks in, and begins to work on his own.”

Donald was referred to Goodwill from Michigan Rehabilitation Services for help in securing a job. Julie found an opportunity at the Wesco store in Spring Lake on Donald’s behalf, and the management team there were supportive and open to giving Donald a try.

“Since the first time we met Donald, he has changed tremendously,” said Wesco Manager T.J. Prince. “First day, he was very nervous. He wasn't sure how he was going to like this. And now he walks in, gets his stuff done, clocks in. He tells me, ‘Hey, I'm clocking in and I'm starting to work.’ Okay. That's all I need to know and he goes off and does stuff. So it's been a big change from day one to today.”

“I sweep the floors first. Then I mop the floors, and then I clean the bathrooms,” Donald said. “And then I usually rearrange stuff and then I clean the glass doors.”

“I would agree he is one of our best workers, if not our best worker,” T.J. said. “He shows up on time. He's here 30 minutes early every day. He doesn't complain.”

Donald’s success took time and patience, but his performance and steadfastness has exceeded everyone’s expectations. After Wesco hired Donald, Goodwill provided more than 100 hours of on-the-job coaching services and extended 90-day follow-up.

“I’ve been working with Donald for almost a year,” Julie said. “We started out with job readiness training, interview skills, and job coaching. Donald sometimes struggled with his focus and his ability to control his empotions, but we worked on that and now he is doing an awesome job. Wesco has been very supportive and has worked really hard to make Donald feel comfortable.”

The job of service associate is broad and Donald likes the variety of tasks. Donald’s responsibilities include sweeping and mopping the store, cleaning the bathrooms, wiping down the pumps, emptying garbage, cleaning cooler doors, filling the ice bags, and more. A

Goodwill career coach now visits with Donald just once a week for 30 minutes, and checks in with Wesco management to make sure everything is going smoothly.

“At Goodwill, we all believe that work is extremely important to everyone. It has totally changed Donald’s life,” Julie said. “Donald has a job, owns a debit card, and lives in his own apartment in Spring Lake.”

“He knows what he's doing and it really takes a load off of us because he's able to do so much for us,” T.J. said. “I'm just so proud of Donald.”

When he’s not working Donald likes to play video games and card games, and write superhero stories.”