Stories

Overcoming Obstacles: An Employment Story

As a leading provider of community-based services, including employment support, Vinfen helps people pursue their passions and achieve their professional goals. Danysia, a person receiving services, has finally found a job she loves and her Vinfen team was there every step of the way – showering her with endless guidance and support.

Childhood was not easy for Danysia. For years she suffered from significant and painful trauma. As the years went by, her employment gap continued to widen, and she experienced unemployment for over a decade. Danysia felt lost and did not know how to navigate her employment journey and felt this burden for years. That all changed when she found her team at Vinfen – a set of compassionate, encouraging, and empowering staff that were dedicated to supporting her.

As a result of the empathy and understanding demonstrated by staff, Danysia was able to feel safe with her Vinfen team. “It really helps to have someone there to really care for you,” she explained. Danysia began working with Supported Employment Demo Team Leader Christa Mullaly and Supported Employment Demo Employment Specialist Joey Batson. Through these established relationships, she was able to feel comfortable enough to communicate about her employment goals, have discussions about her strengths and challenges, and ultimately articulate what she needed from a job. Danysia then started working on her resume, collecting references, discussing pros and cons of different positions, exploring job fields that aligned with her interests, and linking up with staffing agencies. Anytime she had a question or needed guidance, her Vinfen team was there.

Christa and Danysia share a special bond full of mutual respect. “I love Christa, Christa is like my sister!” Danysia exclaimed. She and Christa connected immediately and by feeling understood, Danysia felt this was her breakthrough moment, one that she had spent years searching for. Danysia shared, “Meeting her wasn’t just about finding a job, it was more of an emotional support – having that first conversation with Christa I knew this was Godsent.” Christa voiced, “It’s been incredible to see how when life throws her seemingly impossible hurdles, she says, “Not today!” and finds the strength to push through. She has truly become a strong self-advocate and overall unstoppable force.”

Danysia recently started her role as an Access Support Specialist at a hospital and enjoys being the first point of contact with patients. She answers calls, registers patients, intakes their insurance details, provides medical record information, and enjoys helping people. “I really really like it, it’s not stressful,” she said. Throughout Danysia’s employment history, she has never felt this satisfied. Her current role is by far her favorite. “I’ve been looking for a job like this forever,” she expressed.

When thinking about her future goals, Danysia hopes to one day become a Certified Public Accountant (CPA). She is currently working with Christa to find the right program to obtain her CPA, one that works within her current job schedule. “This is something I’ve always wanted to do. I love math, I love numbers, and I’m very detail-oriented,” she described. In the meantime, Danysia is enjoying her job, is a notary public, and Vinfen even helped her get her very own notary kit. Her life feels bright, and Danysia is excited to see what the future holds.

Danysia is sincerely grateful for Vinfen and all the support she has received over the last two years. She describes her life as a true Cinderella story, one full of hardship and pain in the beginning, but later transforms and blossoms into a beautiful story. Danysia hopes that by sharing her story, people will be inspired to keep going. She is a survivor and wants to help remind others that they too can survive. “I survived to tell everyone!” she proclaimed.

As life can be full of twists and turns, Danysia is here to remind you to never give up! “Always be humble and have humility. It takes you far.

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