When Tina Weathers decided to end an abusive relationship, she was not only left with a broken heart. She was left without savings, an income, and could not afford the apartment where she had been living with her ex-fiancé.
“I had nobody to help me out,” says Tina, “I had to fend for myself.”
Tina’s upbringing in an unstable household and her attempt at starting a family left her feeling hopelessly alone. That is until she found HealthWorks, JVS SoCal’s no-cost Certified Nursing Assistant training program.
“The other students there were just like me,” she says, “Some were single mothers…with no income, dealing with hardship.”
In HealthWorks, Tina found more than a vocational program that could help her back on her feet. She found a support system in her classmates and course instructors.
The eight-week course became her lifeline. Soon after completing the course and earning her certification, Tina secured a job as a caretaker at an assisted living facility.
Stories like Tina’s are the reason JVS SoCal partners with groups like The California Commission on the Status of Women and Girls (CCSWG) and the JVS SoCal Women’s Leadership Network (WLN), to tend to the specific needs of women in the workforce.
HealthWorks is one of the programs that benefited from CCSWG’s 2022 grant to place low-income, women of color in high-growth industries like healthcare. The WLN has awarded thousands of dollars in grants dedicated to removing barriers for women and improving the lives.
Tina has since moved up in the industry and is currently working at UCLA Health in Santa Monica. Before getting to this point, she held positions at the American Red Cross and then at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA), where she experienced working with children for the first time.
She stayed at CHLA for nearly five years and devoted herself to the work. “I even had a code named after me,” she says, “They loved me so much!”
These experiences were the forces that propelled her to her current role at UCLA Health. Even though she is happy and getting the top pay for her position, she still aspires to grow her skills. One day, Tina hopes to become a Surgical Technician.
She wants others to know that there are resources in the community like the services and programs JVS SoCal offers to confront difficulties in one’s life and career.
“I had in my heart that the help I received from JVS SoCal keeps giving forward” says Tina, “I wanted to come back and let you know that I’m living proof that the program works.”
Click here to help other women like Tina find a rewarding career.