Goodwill of the Heartland helps Iowa veterans get back on their feet, thanks to federal grant

When military veteran Jeff Berry started working at Goodwill stores in the Quad Cities, he didn't expect to gain a support system along with the income.

Berry is employed through a Goodwill of the Heartland program that helps veterans with employment, with instruction on how to answer questions on job interviews, to be polite and assertive.

The program also helped Berry create an application form and upload it to Indeed.com, where he could apply for other jobs.

"The staff has been really helpful, really understanding. I'm 59 years old and I'm not really good with computers and phones. They helped me create a really good resume and upload that into my phone, so when I do applications through Indeed, I can submit a resume along with the application," Berry said.

A three-year, $216,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Labor will allow the Goodwill Industries of the Heartland to continue providing those resources and programs for Iowa veterans.

Goodwill of the Heartland oversees Goodwill stores in Illinois and Iowa, including the locations in Coralville and Iowa City. The corporation received the grant this month through the Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program that helps U.S. veterans get into the workforce.

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Dustin Schubert, Goodwill of the Heartland's lead veteran specialist, said the organization has been helping veterans using this grant since 2010.

"We help veterans who are at-risk and homeless find employment," Schubert said. "On top of employment, we help them with job readiness training. If they need different skills, we can gear our weekly classroom trainings towards those skills."

Goodwill has Certified for Success programs that allow veterans to gain credentials and certificates that help them find jobs in fields like information technology, customer service and janitorial work, he said.

"We help with resources as well anything job-related," Schubert said. "If it's a gas card or bus pass to help them look for work or get to interviews, as well as helping pay for work supplies to help them be successful in their new employment."

There is also a training program that enables veterans to take the Goodwill classes and then work 12 hours a week for 12 weeks in a Goodwill store to gain work experience and have extra income, with the end result of them having found full-time employment after the 12 weeks.

"Sometimes they find a job within the first couple of weeks of coming to us. Sometimes it takes the full 12 weeks. And sometimes it's a little after," Schubert said. "Each person is different in what they want and what they're looking for in a job. We just do what we can to be that support."

The program runs yearly July through June. It served around 70 veterans this year.

"I really think that everyone deserves a chance, no matter what your status is, where you're coming from, especially our veterans," Schubert said. "We're able to help them get right back on track, so I'm here to just continue to help these guys find the positive in life, even when things aren't going their way at the moment."

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Aaron Hodges, a veteran who is working at a Goodwill of the Heartland store in the Quad Cities, said he joined the program when he was struggling to receive veteran's benefits. The program secured him a part-time job stocking the store, and a place to live.

"I'm working 12 to 15 hours a week in that area and it's something to get an income coming in," he said.

Hodges believes the Goodwill program can help other veterans as well.

"If a veteran is struggling, they'll find ways to give those veterans work," he said. "Apply yourself, and it may take a bit of time, but it'll all come together."

Hodges said he is looking for a full-time job, and is grateful for the help he has received from the Goodwill programs.

"Goodwill has done very good by me," he said. "They've helped me tremendously. I wouldn't be where I'm at right now, I promise you."

Berry also has been treated well by Goodwill. Along with helping with business skills and getting him employment, Goodwill helped Berry get proper clothes and shoes for job interviews and the other jobs he works. He works at Goodwill stores in Davenport, Bettendorf and Rock Island.

The organization even helped him when his car broke down and he was evicted from his residence.

"I was a wreck. Dustin (Schubert) reached out and helped me try to figure out ways to come up with money to get my truck fixed," Berry said. "He made calls to different agencies to try to get some help. He was very good at trying to slow me down and take one step at a time."

Schubert helped Berry find resources to cover the cost of his car repairs, stay employed at Goodwill locations, and move into a new apartment.

"I don't know what I would have done without the help that they offered me," Berry said. "Sometimes it's the small things that make you feel good inside and show yourself to other people that you are worth who you are."

With no family in Iowa to rely on, Berry said that Goodwill of the Heartland and the people who work there have become his friends and family.

"When you're lost, lonely, cold, you have no end goal, they seem to always have something to offer, whether it's a blanket, or whether it's cold water, or coffee, or a place to go," Berry said. "Goodwill stepped up to the plate, and really made me feel like there is somebody there even though I didn't have any family here."

This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: Goodwill of the Heartland is giving Iowa veterans work opportunities