Job Training At Deseret Industries?


Melissa569
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Hey everyone! Boy, its been a long time since I have posted here, lol.

Just wanted to ask-- has anyone gone through the work placement and career training that Deseret Industries offers? Did it help you? Did you like doing it?

Situation:

I got divorced, because Shawn just would not give up the gambling, no matter what I did, what help I tried to get for him, or what the good people at the church did to help. He lost everything to the casino, and got us evicted from our apartment. So I divorced him, and moved back to my home town. I'm currently staying with my mother, until I can get back on my feet around this area.

Anyway, during the marriage (if you can call it that, lol), I ran a part-time business from home on the internet. It was ok, with my husband's income. But now.... I have very little "regular" work or training experience. I know I'm gonna have to be totally independent now, like maybe go to career school, find where I belong job-wise, get my own place, etc. Which sounds like a healthier change of pace, while I get my head and heart sorted out. Even if it is going to be an extremely bumpy ride... :)

So I visited the local LDS employment office... But really they mostly just allow you the use of their computers, to do internet job searches (which I can do from home, and which I've applied for everything local for someone with my skills and experience, but.. No luck, lol). Maybe they do a few workshops to boost your self confidence, etc. But that's pretty much it.

But I went to the Deseret Industries website here: Training and Placement , and they say that at the nearest Deseret Industries (for me its Sacremento, CA, about an hour's drive away), they will put you to work in one of their thrift stores, while they train you in whatever skill you would like to learn, and you can even go to school through the vocational training they sponsor, in local community colleges. You have to get a referral from the bishop to go there, and I'm gonna make an appointment to see our bishop tomorrow, while I'm at church.

So yeah, just wanted to see if anyone else has done it and what its like.

Edited by Melissa569
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Hey, Melissa!

I remember you going through a tough time with your husband/exhusband. It's good to hear that you're doing okay and that you're taking care of yourself. Regarding your question.. I have not done it, so I just don't know. But there are a lot of online courses you can take if you're wanting to go back into schooling. For now though, if you're just needing to get some extra income in, I'm sure job training and job placement at DI will be helpful. I had a friend that went through a similar situation as yourself with a new baby. She was able to pick herself up and now she's functioning pretty well on her own.

Best of luck and keep us posted.

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I haven't done that myself, but I've helped a few people go through the process on my mission and it's helped them out a lot. Of course, I was in the San Bernardino area, and since the DI is in Colton for some people I taught the DI was within walking distance (or at least within a 10-20 minute drive). The DI is a great place not only to get a job, but also to have some "regular" work experience (as you call it) to put on your resume. I'd balance out the pros with your long commute, but I'm certain you'd enjoy the experience. :)

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Thanks, your replies make me feel like it is a good thing.

I suppose when I get to speak to the bishop, I will ask him if there is any way I can perhaps stay closer to DI while I work there... Like if they know any single young women who might be ok with a short-term room mate, until I get a little studio apartment or something. I'm really quiet, and I mostly mind my own business and keep to myself (not in a grouchy way, I'm just sorting myself out is all), and I'm neat. So I'm not one of those "nightmarish" roomies you can't wait to get rid of, haha.

Or maybe if there is an empty-nest couple with the church, who don't mind letting someone rent a room until they get their own place, or something. I hear they sometimes do that for missionaries, but maybe someone would for a decent young woman who is simply "displaced", I don't know.

I am doing well on my own terms, considering everything. But I would do A LOT better if I left my mother's house, lol. First to be closer to work or school, and second-- to have peace and reduce my stress levels. I suppose its nice of Mom to let me stay here, but I'm afraid it comes at a VERY big price. See, I never was much for drama. So I don't share the sentiments she's always been well-known for-- having loud arguments, and profanity contests 24/7 with anybody unlucky enough to be within 30 feet... I'm already going through enough, as you can imagine. So I don't need that too.

All I want right now is a peaceful, healthy environment, while I concentrate on work and school.

Hopefully if I explain that to the bishop, he will agree. :)

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My little (age 51 yo) sister is educated and trained as a phlebotomist, yet she refuses to apply because she knows that the hospitals are hiring traveling phlebotomist and she wants a sit at the work area and do the work and not even walk to the patients rooms job.

She is now working at Deseret Industries, and walking all over the place! She moved to the Pacific NW from Atlanta, GA. Just recently, according to her FB account, she is also employed with a collection agency.

At one point in my life, had I lived closer to DI, I would have gone there for employment and hopefully retraining. Lived 350 miles from the nearest one.

Instead, through the State Employment Division I was introduced to Community Services Consortium. CSC is federally funded, it re-trains, educates and teaches one how to find and keep jobs. It paid for my on-line schooling, the classes taught me how to write a resume, resume cover letter and provided role-playing classes on job interviews. Took the scary right out of it for me.

Have you talked with your states employment division? See if they can direct you regarding re-training, education, etc.

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Iggy-- Yeah, I was thinking about drawing blood as a career... Or maybe going with my natural talents, like any kind of office job training, because I'm actually really good on the computer and I type pretty fast. So I figure if I got brushed up on all the office programs commonly used, and had some kind of certification or training course to list on a resume, that would look pretty good. :)

Haven't heard of CSC yet, but I will check them out too :) The reason I figured the church might be a good way to go, is because California's state budget for such programs is really going down the drain, lol.

At the welfare office, they have a "welfare to work" program, much like DI's program... But they have restricted it to people with children only (don't have any, lol). And even that, the Governor is trying to have that program canceled, to save on budget costs... Which I personally think is counter productive. hmmm.....

A lot of people told me try R.O.P., because that place used to have like a dozen training courses for free. Even thing slike Medical Billing and Coding. So I checked their website, and state budget cuts have limited them to only things like "welding"... I went to the employment offices, like my dad suggested (both LDS and regular state employment office). But except for some resume building and interview workshops (which I might do, just to help with confidence), they mostly just point you to the computers, and have you do internet job searches, which I can do from home. I guess its a good place for people who don't have a computer though.

Wow, sooooo much has changed from the budgets, let me tell you... My dad said when he needed help 8 years ago, all those programs had SEVERAL vocational training and placement assistance opportunities. They used to pay your gas to the training or classes, pay for the schooling, buy your uniforms and tools (like if you wanted to work in government jobs, or construction or something). They did a lot to get displaced people trained up and ready, back in the day. But now there is almost no funding for them to do this with... Sad, really.

If the church still offers something like that, then I'm gonna jump all over it! lol. I think the church probably has better funding than a lot of state programs, because they don't depend on state budgets. I believe they use things like tithing, or fast offerings, or maybe profits from their thrift stores and the mall and such, to keep their programs going. And that's a little more dependable. Then it gets circulated too, because when they hire you in the thrift stores, or help you get placed anywhere else, you pay tithe with your income later. So its a pretty good self-supporting system they have going.

Pretty smart, I think.

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Melissa - I just want to step in here and say that if you decide to go back to school, please go to a community college or university, not to a for-profit program. Those programs 1) are often poorly run and students don't get what they pay for, 2) are over priced (you'd be a lot better off at a CC), 3) many of these for profit schools have poor graduation records, despite what they tell you the job market is, there students rarely graduate and rarely get placed as they thought they would when they started out. Don't let the slick tv marketing fool you.

CCs have career counseling, you can take remedial courses in math and English if you need them, there are a lot of certificate programs where you can get training and get out in a year or so. If you go to a proprietary school now and change your mind later, it is unlikely any of your credits will transfer.

I'm sorry to hear this has happened to you, but you sound like you are getting yourself back together. Good luck.

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Dahlia-- Thank you :)

Yeah, I think Community Colleges are better. The DI website says they partner with community colleges for education, so I will ask them if I can do training at a CC. I spoke to a woman over the phone at DI, and she says "We always have our trainees work while they go to school". So that will be good.

I guess the only advice I can give other women out there is-- whether you want a career, or you want to be a homemaker-- always have a backup plan. Seriously. Go to school, get some training, and work for a while BEFORE you get married or have kids. I don't mean you should be constantly paranoid about losing what you have... I just mean never let yourself to get caught in a position where you would end up like me, if something WERE to happen. Because it is possible no matter who you are, where you are from, or how involved in the church you are.

And if like me, you didn't do that before you got married-- start doing it now, lol. At least the schooling part.

Edited by Melissa569
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I have a cousin who lives in the Elk Grove, CA area and trained at the DI in the Sacramento area. She loved it. I don't know anything more beyond that. If you want, I could ask her more information about it.

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