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At 72 years young, Cynthia Claude Rawson, a Fort Dodge, Iowa resident, has a happy work and home life with her cat, Gracie Kitty. It wasn’t always this idyllic; Cynthia has overcome many challenges throughout her life. She discovered she…

Jessie Castaneda was born in Chicago, and raised in the city during the 1960s and 1970s. After dropping out of high school, Jessie enlisted in the U.S. Army where he found structure and drive. It was in the Army that…

Cassandra Stinson, a 34-year-old West Chicago native and mom of three, began her career in the healthcare field about 11 years ago. “My auntie was working in a direct support position, and when I found out more about what it…

“Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.” Article 23 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.*  Every day thousands of individuals make the difficult and…

David Guillen is originally from Moroleon, a small town in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico. At the age of 3, his family moved to Chicago and he spent the rest of his childhood raised between the two countries. A constant…

George Drain worked at a metal engineering organization for 32 years. He was an absolute expert in shaping and forming metal! Unfortunately, the organization went out of business in early 2023 and George found himself unemployed. The very first thing…

A Veterans Career Path: From In-Person Warrior to Cyber Warrior  Mark Hopkins spent 30 years in the U.S. Army where he had about nine different roles from commander to inspector general and many in between. Mark’s very last assignment was…

The period between Halloween and the December holidays is usually when shoppers are out in force and retail businesses bulk up their staffing to meet the rush. This year is no different in those regards, but with one key change…

Jasmine Tutson is a go getter. By the age of 24, Jasmin worked in a variety of roles including Certified Nursing Assistant, Electrocardiogram technician, and phlebotomist – just to name a few. Her thirst for life experience, growth, and knowledge…

Q: Why is important to celebrate and highlight the workforce development industry?  A. It’s important that we showcase the careers in our communities! Monthly and weekly celebrations like National Apprenticeship week, and especially Workforce Development Month which just occurred in…

Kym Simmons worked in the banking industry for most of her career, however her dreams and aspirations changed in March 2023. It was during this time that Kym decided to pursue a career outside of the corporate world, so she…

This National Hispanic Heritage Month, National Able Network honors the achievements and contributions Hispanics and Latinos have added to the United States. As a workforce agency, we can’t help but look at the ever-lasting impact Hispanics and Latinos have had…