Q&A With An Empower Work Help Seeker: Dawn’s Story

Ever wonder what it’s like to text Empower Work? Meet Dawn. Dawn was struggling with long-term unemployment for two years when she reached out to Empower Work for support. She is a caretaker, a mother, and now a CNA who found light at the end of the tunnel after a long and harrowing job search where she’d felt like she’d tried everything. Our writer, Mackenzie, met with Dawn to get a sense of what her job search was like, and what it was like to text Empower Work. 

Can you share what was happening at work when you reached out to Empower Work? What led you to reach out for support?

I reached out for support because I had been unemployed, long-term. I had been unemployed for two years. I found out about your free service through a partnership of yours, which was SkillUp.

What made it feel urgent for you to reach out to Empower Work?

I was like, “Well, I've tried everything else. I might as well reach out and find out what it was about and experience it.” It was encouraging to speak with a peer counselor who had experience supporting people navigating unemployment, and I thought it was unique, and I wanted to take advantage of it.

What were other things that you tried before reaching out to the text line that didn't work out?

I tried a national go-back-to-work program. That didn't work out. I tried an IT program which the company had rolled out for ten years at least, and in the middle of the online training that I was doing, the instructor announced [...] that the examples we've been working through have not been complete, and we had to take a test at the end. Everything I touched fell through. I posted on social media with my little circle of friends to send me any job leads, or if you hear of a job,  reach out to me. I tried everything. I did get recommended for one job, but it definitely did not turn out very well. I was only there a few days, and it was rat infested. I had another recommendation at a church [...] and that didn't work out. You'd think that I was making up these stories, but literally, I'm not. It was really really really crazy. I would say two years of Twilight Zone. 

Was there an “a-ha!” moment in that conversation with your peer counselor?

Yes, there was. I was speaking to a peer counselor, Derek, and at the time I was considering moving to another state. I had already tried everything else it seemed. I was considering another state, but I later decided—well, life decided for me—that wasn't the route to go because my dad was ill.

You texted the line more than once. Can you walk me through that experience? 

I spoke with two peer counselors, Carly and Derek, and you know what I find very unique is that if the peer counselor's time is going to run up, they will hand you off to someone else. So I did experience a handoff to another peer counselor. I first was speaking to Derek at one point, and then I spoke to Carly. Both have had different perspectives, different advice. So I did one session, and it ran out. I was handed over to a peer counselor, and then I reached out again. I typically save my text messages, so I went back to see. 

How would you describe the overall vibe of your peer counselors? 

They allow you to be heard. They are positive. They're very good about asking questions and where you've navigated in the work world and employment. Carly was great with providing me with some perspectives because I had gotten a job lead at one point when I reached back out and spoke with her, and I'm like, "How do I prepare for a job lead?” Because you don't really know if you're going to have an interview or not. So she gave some suggestions. Some of the things were typical—like, take two copies of your resume. She suggested to me to look at different possible interview questions, be extra prepared, do research about the director—things like that. They did listen well, and if they didn't understand me, they would ask for clarification. They're very, very good communicators.

What, if anything, did you do differently in your job search after speaking with a peer counselor?

I know that I had already done a lot of things [in regards to the job search], such as looking at personality types in regards to career and other things. But somewhere along the line, I came back to the conclusion that I've always taken care of people, and so that was just what I needed to do. So I went out and looked and searched and said, "Okay, I'm going to start. I'm gonna do in-home care.” So I started doing in-home care.

What kind of work had you done before? 

Before becoming unemployed, my background was customer service and a little bit of HR. I did some administrative work and supported higher management, things like that. I was taking care of my dad, and I started babysitting when I was ten. So off and on throughout my life, I'd always taken care of people—and I’m also a mom. So I just came upon the conclusion that that's what I was going to do.

What is your work situation today?

I did in-home care for about 13-14 months, and in that time, things really started to shake. So I got my first full-time job doing in-home care in February of 2025, and through the company that I was hired through, they have their own education, which then was equivalent to being a certified home health aide, so the wheels in my head started turning, and like they always do, almost nonstop. [...] Long story short, I am now a certified CNA. I went through a school that partners up with another nonprofit that really helps fill the gap and the shortage of CNAs and nurses. I received a free CNA scholarship, and I completed that. I got my license almost at the end of last year in 2025, so I continued working with different in-home agencies, but it was demanding, and so I turned a leaf a little bit, and I now work in a local hospital. 

I am classified as a CNA. I do not have a patient load, I work Monday through Friday, and I have the weekends off. It is a specific job that was created just for the person that I report to, and I believe it was divinely made just for me. I support two managers and a director of nursing, and I absolutely love it. Organization and processes and workflows are just my thing. Efficiency is my game, and I just absolutely love it, and this may really be of note in sharing that the same hospital that I work at, the same floor, the same unit I was hired for, my dad was. That was the first time he had been at that hospital. The last week of his life, he was at that same hospital in that same unit. And so, I wear a picture of my dad in a charm that I made, and even when I was doing in-home care, I said that the care that I provide is in honor of my dad, and so I have that charm attached to my badge where I work at the hospital as well.

Have you told anyone else about Empower Work and how do you describe our service when you do?

That it's simple, it's easy, and you know it's confidential and it's free. That sums it up. And in this economy, you know, there's not much that’s free. That's an endangered species.

What do you hope that people who are in similar situations take away from a conversation on the text line?

Never, ever, ever give up. Never stop believing. The doors will eventually open. That right job, the right place, it will eventually happen.