As we enter summer and spring draws to a close, we want to share the immense impact our Spring Training Series has had upon its participants. This four-month training series is an important part of our Survivor Development Program and has created opportunities for our survivors to learn and grow, both personally and professionally. With visits from speakers who are experts within their field and hands on events that provided real-word experience in a safe and controlled environment, these women have pushed past their discomfort and come out stronger.
Health is Wealth
The first part of the program was centered around health, grocery shopping, and nutrition. For many of our survivors who may have overcome food scarcity from living in a food desert and/or little or no access to food, it can be difficult to plan out healthy meals and grocery lists. Registered dietitian, Desiree Wheeler-Hissong, spoke with the women of the program and explained the impacts that certain diets have on specific health concerns. Wheeler-Hissong was also able to describe the many ways that nutrition acts as the building blocks of our long-term health.
Following the presentation, there was an opportunity for the women participating to plan out shopping lists that not only supported a healthier lifestyle but also fell within a set budget. It was a chance for growth in intentionality, combatting impulsivity, and feeling support in an everyday task that more often than not harbors stress and anxiety. Once the lists were confidently drafted, it was time to put theory into action. Survivors shopped the aisles and fulfilled their lists in a positive experience, which was possible through the generous donations from the community.
“I learned how to make a grocery list and stick to a budget. I also learned that the middle of the store is processed foods and that shopping around the outside is healthier for your kids and yourself.”
To round out the focus on health, Dr. Jeannine Mauney, MD led the Women’s Health Seminar. During this informational session Dr. Mauney was able to accurately describe the process of the healthcare experience and procuring healthcare providers that are in network. Mauney was also able to dive into health issues, diagnoses and illnesses that commonly present in women, while also explaining the impact of preventative healthcare and maintaining annual appointments with physicians. The survivors attending the session were able to see the logistics of healthcare while also becoming more aware of how important maintaining their day-to-day health can be in the long term.
Women In the Workplace
The next part of the training series was focused on professional development. To help women feel more prepared for the formalities of the workplace, the Survivor Development Program team was able to host an event appropriately entitled, “Dress for Success.” This event turned part of the Rethreaded campus into a thrift store full of donated clothing. Women in the program then got to pick clothes that they would want to wear to a job interview, as well as jewelry and shoes to complete their professional attire. Rethreaded’s volunteer-led giving circle, Circle of Sisters, helped ensure the event’s success by not only donating their own clothing, but also volunteering their time. Circle of Sister volunteers saw to collecting donations from different donors, organized the clothing into different racks, and assisted the survivors by providing them with their expertise as the women browsed the array of clothing.
While Dress for Success achieved the initial goal of supplementing survivors’ wardrobes, Hope’s Closet compounded the impact even further by giving each woman the chance to choose five additional pieces of clothing from their store. Through this generous donation, the women in the Survivor Development Program were able to secure a more expansive collection of professional pieces to finish their capsule wardrobe and feel as though they will have choices for their outfits when they enter the workforce.
Once the survivors felt the positive external impact from “Dress for Success” it was then time to work through the internal factors of their career-centered training. The Adecco Foundation, an organization that strives to create equality in the workforce through education, led a training around resume building. Members of their staff led a workshop on drafting resumes and then sat down and worked through women’s questions and concerns about the process. These staff members, alongside Rethreaded team members, were able to help survivors vocalize their skills and strengths on paper so that their resumes were a better reflection of who they are. There were also invaluable lessons regarding formatting and styling their resume, tips that every aspiring professional is constantly working towards perfecting. At the end of the day the survivors were then able to make any revisions that they received during the workshop, knowing that their strength and experience would shine through.
The training series came to a head at its final event, mock interviews. The event sought to give survivors the chance to put forth the skills they had learned and start to feel comfortable talking to an interviewer. The Adecco Foundation’s staff hosted the interviews in a safe and controlled environment in which many of the participants were met with warm and welcoming faces that eased them into the process. When asked about the interview experience one woman in the program said, “For the interviews I learned that constructive feedback didn’t feel negative in any way. It helped me to see myself from someone else’s perspective.” The survivors had a sense of control in a situation where oftentimes people can feel powerless, and they successfully navigated the interviewer’s questions.
“I really liked being able to do interviews with Adecco and being able to get feedback. To be able to go in and have the Adecco team sit down, introduce themselves, and make me feel more comfortable. They also gave great feedback and answered my questions, ‘What should I say during that question? What should I share and how can I answer without oversharing?’ I thought it was super helpful.”
Through this four-month training series, survivors were faced with discomfort and challenges but also growth and learning opportunities. Even though this was something that they had to complete for themselves, it was also possible through the careful planning of the Rethreaded Survivor Development Program team and the motivation of their community. When asked about their favorite part of the program one survivor stated, “I would say learning all those things with my coworkers. Experiencing it with people that I’ve been in other programs with and seeing where we are now.”
We are so proud of all the strong individuals who completed this training and look forward to seeing their impact in the future.