皇冠app学院（Goodwin College）在设施部招聘一名保管员。 艾略特·里德需要一份全职工作。 天作之合，他现在是River校区熟悉的社区成员。

58岁的里德在思考他的未来计划时，他敏锐地意识到把他带到河滨大道的挑战。

里德以前是一名校车司机。 “I was living with my girlfriend, who developed breast cancer,” he said. “She was in remission, but when the cancer came back, she thought it was best if I didn’t watch.” He moved out, but when his rent was raised to a level he couldn’t afford and he was displaced, he became a resident of Mercy Housing in Hartford, part of a national nonprofit organization working to build a more humane world where poverty is alleviated.

他一搬进仁爱之家，就在复活节印章找到了一份兼职工作，该机构为残疾和有特殊需要的儿童和成人提供支持服务。 他还曾在少年拘留中心担任过一段时间的信息专家。 “I enjoy every job I have,” he explained. “I like people. 我喜欢生活。 I embrace it.”

Reed目前仍然是Mercy Housing的过渡生活项目的一名居民，他曾与Goodwin合作过一些社会倡议。 “Goodwin’s Human Resource team is in touch with the employment specialist at Mercy Housing and I’m a product of that partnership,” Reed stated.

他被聘为一名全职员工，正准备加入设施部。

“I needed a full-time position to begin making the transition out of Mercy.” 里德说。 “Being at Goodwin would put me on the right path. The steady income and benefits would enable me to transition.”

可悲的是，另一个挑战还在后面。

Only days before he was set to start his new position, Reed’s mother passed away. “My supervisors came to the funeral, and they gave me time off to grieve.” 他很感激皇冠app社区对他的同情和同情，甚至在他开始之前。

里德打算利用他有资格作为学院雇员的教育机会。 在此之前，他参加了成为一名戒毒/戒酒康复顾问的课程，并希望进入皇冠app的人类服务项目。

“I want to help get people on the right path. I know the way, I go the way, I show the way.”

尽管经历了艰难的旅程，里德仍然对自己的未来充满乐观和希望。

“I’m fortunate. I’ve just been blessed.”