When Lora Williams saw a commercial for Job Corps in 2000, she felt called to dial the number on the screen. “It was a pretty abnormal thing for me to do,” Lora said. “I didn’t think anything would come of it, I just thought I might as well try.”
Lora was 16 years old at the time and a high school dropout. She was working odd jobs to fill her time and try to make money, but deep down she knew that wasn’t working for her. Some might call that commercial ‘being in the right place at the right time,’ but Lora considers it fate. When she applied, a fellow church member who worked at the Gary Job Corps Center saw Lora’s name on this list of new applicants. “Ms. Frank knew I could do it. She was the first of many Job Corps staff to support me, even when I didn’t know it,” she said.
When she arrived on center, Lora didn’t have many expectations; but she knew she wanted to get her high school diploma. “Earning my GED was the hardest part,” she said, “because most of the people in my family did not excel academically. I really didn’t think I was going to be able to do it.” In exactly one year and one month, she completed her diploma and her Certified Nursing Assistant training program. Outside of her training, she played in her dorm’s recreational basketball league and found that the campus music room was a safe space for her.
Lora admits that making the right decisions for herself was a conscious choice she had to make every day. She chose herself to be her reference point, “I set expectations for myself and chose not to be around negativity. I had to retrain my brain and make a new perception of myself and my abilities, but I did it.”
Lora made great relationships at the Gary Job Corps Center, and her dorm residential advisor, Brenda Buffet, is even the godmother of her children. She vividly remembers many of the staff who supported her throughout those formative years. “There was one instructor who worked with each student individually every day until we were ready for the GED,” Lora said. Her greatest influence was Ms. Welch of the CNA program. “If I had the opportunity to say thank you to anyone, it would be Ms. Welch. She had a profound impact on me, and I would love for her to see how far I have come in the health care field.”
After completing her time at Job Corps, Lora decided to stay in Texas, where she met her husband, a fellow Job Corps graduate, and attended Austin Community College, where she earned her medical aide certification. She later went on to become a licensed vocational nurse and eventually a registered nurse. Her time at Job Corps exposed her to the medical field for the first time, and that is where she found her calling. She fell in love with working with elderly patients and knew she wanted to continue to grow in the industry so she could better serve them.
Lora is also an author with five published books and has traveled the world. She currently sponsors two young women in Kenya and Honduras because she believes that women everywhere deserve a chance at an education. She considers herself a student of the world these days and is always stretching herself to do more and make an impact in any way she can. Prior to COVID-19, she would often go back to the Gary Job Corps Center and speak to the female students. By investing her time in them, she was able to show them all that they could do and the many, many possibilities out there for them.
Her piece of advice for current Job Corps students? “Don’t underestimate the opportunity you have in front of you right now. It is easy to not understand the value, but this program can launch your entire career. Education in an in-demand training area is priceless, and at Job Corps, you get that for free.”
Graduated from Job Corps in: 2001 Employer: Registered Nurse, Author, Business Owner Hometown: Lafayette, Louisiana Phone: 512-618-5433 Submitted by: Sellars Huy Notes:
Source: Center Submission, Susanne Ritter, (512) 396-6885