For seven years, Ravila worked with a major retailer in Savannah. When his time there came to an unexpected end, he found a new path with Goodwill’s AbilityOne program, and it changed everything.
“I went to a vocational rehab company, and they helped me find this job with AbilityOne at Goodwill,” Ravila shared. “They asked me if I wanted to be a janitor or custodian through the federal contracts, and I said okay.”
For Ravila, this was a start of a new journey. Goodwill wasn’t just an opportunity for work, it was a place to build toward goals and develop a career plan. Ravila was given the tools to succeed.
They just helped me in trying it, helping me with interviews and stuff and (trying) to venture out into other roles I'd like to do.”
Through the support of his team, Ravila learned how to take ownership of his work, manage cleaning tasks on his own, and develop the confidence to speak up for himself.
“At first, I was nervous. I didn’t really know how to speak up for myself,” he admitted. “But they showed me how to do it. My project manager at GSA taught me how to do everything on my own.”
Now, Ravila is passing that knowledge on to others. “(Goodwill is) a good company to work for. They have a lot of benefits. It makes me excited now, I can take what I’ve learned and teach it to other people,” Ravila said with pride. “They follow through with what they’ve learned from me.”
October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month, a time to acknowledge the importance of creating opportunities for everyone to contribute to the workforce.
Through the AbilityOne program, Goodwill Southeast Georgia is able to offer on-the-job training, classroom instruction, life skills development, and additional support to help individuals thrive.
Learn more about AbilityOne
Goodwill Southeast Georgia's AbilityOne program hires, trains, and supports more than 100 individuals annually, 75 percent of whom have documented disabilities.
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