Success Story – Esse Wanuki
Originally from Mozambique, when Esse Wanuki moved to Indiana, she worked as a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) until an unfortunate back injury left her with a disability that made it impossible for her to continue working. After much physical therapy, Esse started to work with Goodwill’s Disability Services to find a job that would accommodate her new restrictions.
Disability Services helped place Essie at a part-time home health companion position that did not require lifting and could work for her back injuries. Esse’s employment advisor coached her on disclosing her disability, so she could be successful in her new role. Unfortunately, the employer was unable to employ Esse for enough hours per week, so her Disability Services employment advisor continued to work with her as she developed her interview skills and referred her to Goodwill’s TalentSource. A close partnership between TalentSource and Eskenazi Health resulted in connecting Esse to a patient service assistant position at Eskenazi’s Forest Manor Clinic. Esse is working successfully in her position at Forest Manor and has plans to move forward with more education. She also aims to move up within her company and continue to advance her career.
“I had gone on a lot of interviews that didn’t work out. The Goodwill staff worked with me on my resume and on interviewing skills. I’m where I am now because of what I learned from them. They didn’t give up.” – Esse Wanuki