Meet Kevin

Kevin’s story shows the power of perseverance when it’s paired with Goodwill. A learning disability was just one barrier that made it difficult for Kevin to find work. His case worker with Missouri Vocational Rehabilitation referred him to Goodwill for hands-on help to find a job. Kevin had encountered disappointment after disappointment in his search for employment. 

“I’d put in applications and call and they’d tell me they would call but they never did.” 

Perseverance paired with Goodwill landed Kevin Rhea a job with Home Depot in 2009. He’s still happily employed today.

Enter, a Goodwill career navigator who teamed up with Kevin for the job hunt. Kevin knew the position he wanted, so the two came up with a game plan and stuck to it. “Kevin really wanted to work at Home Depot, so it was just a lot of going in there in person, filling out applications online,” his Career Navigator says. “We went into Home Depot so much that they finally told Kevin, we’re going to hire you we just can’t hire you for a few months.” 

Sure enough, Kevin got the call for an interview, another barrier Goodwill helped him overcome. With no transportation of his own, Kevin relied on his Goodwill career navigator to take him to the interview. His career navigator also provided emotional support from start to finish. “Prepping him for the interview, and then sitting there while he was being interviewed… just somebody familiar being there, that was a big help to him.” The two also both followed up after the interview. 

Finally came the good news…a job offer “I was actually kind of excited,” Kevin says.

“I really wanted the job for a long time. Right after I got out of school, that was my first thing I wanted to do.” 

Five years, a dozen customer service awards and a few promotions later, Kevin is still employed at Home Depot. He’s reached milestones, including independent housing and earning a driver’s permit, and continues to work toward new goals every day.