Jamie's Story

"Keep moving forward" is Jamie's mantra when she encounters challenges in life. At the beginning of 2022, Jamie was working a factory job she didn't like and borrowing her dad's car to get there. While the job was stable, it offered few opportunities for career advancement.

Her sister heard about CityLink Center, so Jamie looked into it. While she was initially attracted to the phlebotomy program, she switched to network infrastructure through Per Scholas after meeting with her service coordinator.

A career in Information Technology was demanding and required transportation to work with clients all over the city. Now that she had a higher income and stronger career path, Jamie was eligible to purchase a car through ChangingGears. In the first month, car ownership immediately unlocked career opportunities because she could travel farther to meet with clients and work the hours she wanted. She's no longer limited to the public transportation schedule or reliant upon someone else to borrow a car.

In addition to making a car affordable for her, Jamie loved the community at CityLink Center and ChangingGears. "Everyone was so helpful," she said, "they gave me a gas card the day I purchased the car, and the loan payments were reasonable."

If she could talk to the woman she was one year ago, she would tell her, "Go to school, learn everything you can and keep moving forward."