Larry Graham

After 30 years as a factory worker Larry Graham found himself unemployed.  He was TAA eligible, but at that time there were no available dollars.  He always had an interest in the nursing field.  After thoroughly researching training options, including taking assessment tests, Career Exploration workshops, and doing basic skills brush up work in the Skills Center at the CareerLink, he was accpeted into the Licensed Practical Nursing (LPN) program at Lawrence County Vo Tech.  Mr. Graham's LPN training was funded through a WIA Dislocated Worker Grant and later, when it became available, received additional funding from TAA/TRA.  Larry struggled through classses that were foreign to his former occupation, but successfully graduated and secured employmment at Glade Run Lutheran Services earning $13.50 per hour.  Larry loves his new career and plans to continue on to an RN degree.

Dominic D'Itri

When Chi Chi's Restaurant closed its doors to the public in the spring of 2004, after the largest Hepatitis A outbreak in the country, Dominic D'Itri was faced with an equally daunting prospect.  For the first time in his life, this former Assistant General Manager was now seeking employment.

With three children and a wife to support, Dominic acted quickly and attended a Job Training for Beaver County sponsored job search workshop in June of 2004.  Soon after, he began honing his interviewing skills after receiving numerous restaurant management interviews.  In October of 2004, Dominic was offered an Assistant Manager position with Don Pablos Restaurant in Robinson Township.  Dominic fared well by increasing his wages by almost 9% from his previous position, making an annual salary of $40,000 plus bonuses.