Why I Do What I Do – September 2014

I started doing this job because I was retiring from the Air Force, needed a paycheck, my wife didn’t want me hanging out on the couch all day, and Career Path Services was the first company to offer me a job.

All kidding aside, I wanted to work for a company that was dedicated to service. I spent 20 years of my life in the service of others and could not see myself doing anything else. The mission of Career Path Services to empower people, enhance the workforce, and enrich our community fall in line with the core values of the Air Force: integrity first, service above self, and excellence in all we do. This spoke to me in so many ways.

I spent a lot of time overseas and in third world countries with the Air Force interacting and helping those living in poverty, and found I have a passion for the work and a passion to change lives. When I would return home, I would see homelessness and poverty in my own backyard and wonder what was being done to fix this problem. When Career Path Services gave me the opportunity to make a difference, I jumped at the chance.

I love this country very, very much. It breaks my heart to see people, especially children, living in poverty for any reason in this great nation. I don’t believe that anyone sets out to live in poverty. I also don’t believe that people enjoy living in poverty. What I do believe is that everyone deserves a second chance and America is truly the land of opportunity. We are too great a nation to accept failure in the war on poverty.

To quote Benjamin Franklin   “I am for doing good to the poor, but…I think the best way of doing good to the poor, is not making them easy in poverty, but leading or driving them out of it. I observed…that the more public provisions were made for the poor, the less they provided for themselves, and of course became poorer. And, on the contrary, the less was done for them, the more they did for themselves, and became richer.”

Why do I do what I do? I do it to make a difference in my community, city, and country. I do what I do to secure the future of our children, and, in turn, the future of this great nation. I do what I do because I grew up in poverty and believe I can share a road map with people of how to rise from poverty and that success is real and attainable. I do what I do because I get to walk into battle each and every day with some of the most incredible difference makers on the planet:  Sarai Orth, Brenda Cerenzia, Kelli Eller, Cherice Fischer, Nick Hughes, Patti Delbuono, and Nickson Hatungimana. Lastly, I do what I do for my family. I believe it is my duty to serve as a role model for my family and to help them understand that despite our struggles and challenges we face as a family, we are truly blessed in this life.  Anything is possible when we are willing to put in the work and help one another.