Today was my last day working at Goodwill Industries. People asked me all day. where I was going and if I had another job lined up. The answer is NO. I had only been working there since September, When I originally took the job, I thought it would be the best thing for me, because it was dealing with housing. My original offer letter was for the position of Housing Specialist. My job was to negotiate with landlords, leasing agents and property managers to make sure that female veterans and their families were not evicted from their homes. However, because the grant was loosely written. The program was structured to have the program managers create the flow. In this case though, the program manager had an individualist plan that caused dissension within the company. So, much so we had to have meetings with people in our corporate office about how we did not play well together.
Our program only served women veterans and it was only four of us. Due to how our program started, we did not receive the proper training to handle the issues that came about during the time our program was in existence. Yet, we were getting chastised about every mistake we made. About a month into my working there, my job description was changed to Housing and Employment Specialist and additional duties were added.
It wasn't just the extra duties that bothered me, it was how I was only one check away from being these women. I did not appreciate taking apart someones life to provide them with assistance. I knew these women because they were me.
I have experienced almost everything these women have been through. I have had episodes where I spent my money irresponsibly, I have almost been evicted, I have allowed an unqualified man to make decisions for my household, I have had emergencies come up that made it impossible to pay my regular bills. I related too closely to the women that we served. Which made it hard for me to go to work everyday. It also didn't help that, sometimes it could take up to 30 days, to finally get a check, to assist these women. During that time, the women could be evicted,or have their utilities cut off. I would leave work sometimes, emotionally and mentally exhausted. It was hard to know, that these women had children and no family support. They had to either figure it out on their own, or try and get help from some type of community organization. Which due to the rules, regulations and policies they had could make them wait another 30 days to receive services. An endless cycle where they are at the mercy of someone else, just to make sure they are not on the street.
So, I quit.
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