At the Jobs for Life graduation ceremony on May 18, 2018, Angelique Bondurant, a 2015 Jobs for Life graduate, spoke to the graduates and students about her life experiences and what brought her to Forward Training Center.

At Forward Training Center of Hood County, we see students of all ages and walks of life arrive into our classrooms. Sometimes, it’s young adults who didn’t finish high school or need the extra push to help them get a career. Sometimes it’s retired adults who need to get back into the workforce. And sometimes, like in Angelique’s case, it is someone who has suffered great tragedy in their life, and just feel lost.

Angelique lost her long-term job after traveling to Alaska for about a year. When she got back, everything changed.  

“In 2011, my whole life changed,” Angelique said. “My son was killed and I did not lean on God, think of Him, or want to do anything besides go into this dark place, where I stayed for three years. I didn’t leave my house or do anything.”

Years passed for Angelique, but she still needed help to get the confidence she deserved to have.

“A friend of mine wanted me to come to Granbury. So I came, by Monday I had a job at Walmart,” Angelique said. “I went to Mission Granbury, and they told me to go to Stonewater Church. That is where I met Katy Offutt… She just loved me no matter what. I got into the [Jobs for Life] program and got a grievance counselor…. I had a lot of hurt. This is the best thing I had ever done.”

The Jobs for Life program provides more than just a set of classes and skills. It instills a newfound sense of self-worth, lasting relationships, a strong faith in God, and the ability to take that next leap to a career.

“I now realize my son was reborn to Heaven. He is not dead,” Angelique said. “They helped me see that. I have now found my purpose working at Southern Concepts with the mentally challenged. I wish I had been doing this my entire life because I love it.”

Angelique is a wonderful success story about the Jobs for Life program and Forward Training Center. If you want to learn more about how to get involved, please give us a call! Just take Angelique’s word for it.