The two women were helped by a free program operated by the nonprofit Impact Services Corp., which opened its first jobs program 12 years ago in Kensington. A month ago, it opened a similar program in temporary quarters in the Northeast at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Cottman Avenue and Erdrick Street.
Ruth Bercholc, a vocational counselor at Impact, said the program in Kensington saw about 25 to 30 people a month and had about 300 people on its rolls. Bercholc is one of 12 social workers who specialize in helping low- income families.
"We help set up child care and training for them first, before we pursue their job choice," Bercholc said.
She said the program accepted all types of people, including those who had been in jail or in drug-rehabilitation centers, as well as homemakers, students, senior citizens or those who were simply unemployed.
The youth program accepts applicants ages 17-21, and the adult program handles all others. School-age applicants must be graduates or have dropped out of school.
One client, John Walz, had been in the Adult Job Prep program for two weeks. He said that he was satisfied with the program. "We now get to go out on a job search where we select five jobs daily," said Walz.
In the program, adults receive two weeks of training in writing resumes and cover letters; locating jobs, undergoing effective interviews, and understanding the world of work. They remain in the program until they find a job. Impact Services sends applicants to the Private Industry Council for job training.
"We teach people to find jobs on their own," said Impact counselor Elinore Leonards.
Clients are placed in jobs according to their interests and their work experience. The jobs are in such areas as secretarial, computers, nursing (as nurse's aides), warehouse, maintenance and hotels.
