Mike and Sheila Edwards have been through some tough times.

Thursday, April 04, 2002

Mike and Sheila Edwards have been through some tough times. Both lost their jobs and had to struggle with bills and family expenses. The stress took a toll on them and on their children.

But now things are looking up, with both working at Trail’s Travel Center in jobs they enjoy. Mike is a parts and service writer in the truck repair service at Trail’s, and Sheila works as a waitress at the restaurant. With financial stability finally achieved, they are even going to be able to buy a house. They are a welfare success story made possible by their own efforts, but also with the assistance of Workforce Development, Inc. staff.

Tuesday morning, they were able to share their story with Rep. Gil Gutknecht, R-Minn, who visited with them at work. Gutknecht was spending a few days in the district collecting success stories related to the reforms of the welfare system passed by congress during the Clinton administration.

Gutknecht is looking for success stories, because the legislation behind the reform effort is coming up for reauthorization soon, and he expects there to be opposition.

The message the Edwards family gave Gutknecht and the advice they have for others in their situation was to make use of the benefits the system provides.

&uot;Get off the couch and take advantage of what’s available,&uot; said Mike.

&uot;We’re proud of what we’ve done, but without the Workforce Center staff we wouldn’t be where we are now,&uot; Mike added.

&uot;Without the help of Workforce, it would have taken a lot longer,&uot; Sheila said.

The odyssey through unemployment and the welfare system began just about three years ago, when Mike’s original employer went bankrupt, leaving him without a job. He found other work in the area, but as the newest employee, he was always the one laid off each time the companies downsized, said Jerry Copas, a job search counselor at Albert Lea’s Workforce Center.

According to Copas, the Edwards had even considered buying a business, but were unable to make that work out either.

Meanwhile, Sheila lost her job, as well, and injured her back, making the job search for both more difficult. The lack of jobs also began to take a toll on family life, with kids not doing as well in school.

After unemployment ran out, they turned to the Workforce Center, and ended up receiving financial assistance for eight months before they were able to get the jobs they have now. The manager at Trails actually built the job around Mike’s skills, said Copas.

The Edwards themselves have nothing but praise for the assistance they received at the Workforce Center.

Besides working with Copas as they fine-tuned their job search strategies, they also received advice and guidance from Karen Stadheim, who helped with the paperwork required to provide them with a way to buy food and pay their utility and medical bills.

Mostly they’re glad they finally got back on their feet financially because of the affect it’s had on family life.

&uot;We’re all a lot happier now,&uot; said Sheila. Their children feel like they are part of society again, she said. One child, especially, has seen grades at school go from Cs and Ds to straight As.

The benefits of a good job are flowing into many different parts of their life together, both say. And according to them, the help they received during the time they were in the system played a big role in their being able to get those benefits.

They hope the message that the current system works was heard by Gutknecht and will get carried to Washington.