Despite sustaining serious damage to his own home in Cape Coral, SCSEP Coordinator Gavin's first thought was to take care of his seniors. In the aftermath of Hurricane Charley, Gavin headed to Charlotte County and found utter devastation.
"It was beautiful to see everyone helping everyone," Gavin recalled of those days following the hurricane. "I stayed there for two weeks to make sure the needs of our seniors were being met." After that, Gavin quickly re-focused on his office's main mission.
Even months after the hurricanes hit, Gavin's SCSEP participants continue to help victims of all ages apply for unemployment insurance and National Emergency Grant (NEG) assistance. In fact, one of Gavin's participants was the first person in the area hired under the NEG grant as an intake specialist. He now has 5 SCSEP-participant NEG hires at intake centers. When he's not rallying to the aid of his seniors after acts of nature, Gavin is covering more than 5,000 square miles in 7 counties, and is on the road almost every day. Secretary Joanne Melcher and Occupational Specialist Claire Kollett, both of whom are SCSEP participants, provide him with superb support out of the Charlotte County office. "I'm out there beating the bushes for our participants as an advocate for our seniors -- a responsibility that I take very seriously," said Gavin. Gavin's office has been successful in placing SCSEP participants in a wide array of venues, many of which were their host agencies, such as the Salvation Army, Goodwill Industries, Vocational Rehabilitation, Council on Aging, the American Cancer Society and other non-profits. Participants also successfully use One-Stop Career Center resources throughout Southwest Florida to find good jobs. Gavin has helped many people re-enter the workforce. Some of his favorite stories include helping a retired schoolteacher get back into the classroom, and more recently, assisting another participant who landed a $65,000 per year human resources director position. Gavin is proud to report he has exceeded a 60 percent placement rate every year since the Workforce Council took over SCSEP in 2001. "SCSEP is a wonderful program that reaches people who really need help. I'm making a real difference in the lives of our seniors, and that's a great feeling," Gavin said with pride. |
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