Immigrant’s Ambition Leads to Dream Job

When 37-year-old Eduardo first immigrated from Mexico to the United States, he was excited to begin building a new life for himself and his family. He immediately began attending ESL classes to prepare himself for future employment.

When a classmate mentioned that he was earning his commercial driver’s license (CDL) to become a truck driver, the always-ambitious Eduardo leapt at the opportunity to try something new. He soon earned a CDL and was hired, but he found that driving trucks wasn’t fulfilling. It felt like just another job, but what he wanted was a career.

Eduardo zeroed in on his dream career: welding. Seeing his vision through would require going back to school, which at Eduardo’s age would be a daunting transition. He consulted a Goodwill career coach and learned about opportunities for tuition assistance. With Goodwill’s support, he was able to undergo training at the NateOvation Institute of Safety and Welding.

After three months of training, Eduardo secured a job as a fabricator and welder with what he calls “an amazing company,” and is eager to continue to learn and train. He is especially grateful that his new career allows him to spend more time with his family.

“I’m excited about this new chapter in my life,” he said. “Thanks to NateOvation and Goodwill, I have this amazing opportunity to establish myself in this new career path.” Without his Goodwill career coach—who he credits for being with him “every step of the way,”—and the support of his family, he is sure that “this journey would have been much more difficult.”

He added, “I can’t begin to express my most sincere thanks to everyone who was involved in making one of my many goals come true.”

Goodwill sparked Eduardo’s entry into welding.

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