Two more Hopeworks alumni -- Pabel Arizaga and Chris Newbill -- are continuing their professional journey with full time positions at American Water, right here in Camden!
After serving time in the military, Pabel returned home and tried finding employment that fit him, but the jobs did not work out. Ready for a change, Pabel heard about Hopeworks from his mom and his sister and decided to give it a try. Coming to Hopeworks, Pabel worked hard to complete the training, and became a leader on the GIS team, even earning his drone pilot certification as he worked on projects for American Water, Comcast, and other customers. Now, he is taking those skills to American Water as a full time GIS Technician!
Chris found out about Hopeworks through his mom and sister as well. He came to Hopeworks because he was feeling directionless and did not know what his next step would be. Chris did not have the easiest time when he first joined Hopeworks. He described his first few weeks as frustrating, discouraging, and overwhelming. He even admits to being ready to quit at one point. He decided to stick with it because, as he shared, “I realized somewhere along the way that I could not just keep quitting on things.”
Chris has made the most of his time at Hopeworks. He moved from trainee to an intern in our GIS department, where he demonstrated such a high level of skill that he was offered a full time position at Hopeworks working on our American Water contract. Now, he is using those same skills -- at a much higher pay rate -- at American Water, working on their GIS Team.
Congratulations to both Chris and Pabel on their huge growth!
How do you build a future rooted in purpose and possibility? For Luis Olivieri, Director of GIS (Geographic Information System) at Hopeworks, it begins by creating real opportunities and watching young adults rise to meet them. In Part 3 of our "25 Years, 3 Voices, 1 Mission" series, Luis reflects on how hands-on GIS work has not only […]
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July was a big month for Hopeworks, and we brought our mission coast to coast! In Denver, our very own Paishants DePalma and Pecola King joined the HFMA Annual Conference to dive into the latest trends in healthcare finance. From strategy to innovation, they connected with changemakers shaping the future of healthcare and brought back ideas to strengthen our […]
