Second Chance Job Fair in Fort Myers for people with barriers to employment

On Thursday morning, Grace Church is hosting a Second Chance Job Fair in Fort Myers to help people facing barriers to employment, from a prison record to lack of transportation.

Sometimes all you need is a second chance, and one woman is proof. After spending years behind bars and being addicted to drugs, Victoria turned her life around.

Victoria was incarcerated at 23. She was in prison for three years, and just days after release, she found opportunities at the Second Chance Job Fair. Victoria walked out with two job offers and is now a vital team member at WB Williamson Bros, Inc.

The goal of the nonprofit Better Together is to give these job seekers a second chance and break down employment barriers, including homelessness, previous incarceration, a lack of reliable child care and transportation, or even gaps in a resume due to the pandemic.

The job fair will come with resources to help candidates feel and look their best. They will be reviewing resumes, going over interview skills and even giving free haircuts and clothes.

Victoria says she would not have believed you a few years ago if you had told her she would one day be sober, going to church, and working full-time in a job she’s really good at.

“My parents came and got me when I made parole; I got here on a Saturday… [on] Tuesday morning I saw a newscast about the Better Together Second Chance job fair,” Victoria said. “My mom looked at me and said, ‘You gotta go, you gotta try.’ And I walked out of there with actually two job offers. Never thought that I would be in that situation getting out of prison, only being out four days.”

This job fair is being held at 2415 Grand Ave. from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. You could be offered a job on the spot.