A Giraffe has been sighted
in WA |
In 1992 Ginny Gilder had an MBA, an Olympic silver medal, and a life in Seattle that included a promising career in computers, a husband and two kids-everything she touched was going great. Then she saw a television show about a privately run program in New York that was helping women on welfare remake their way-less-than-great lives. Gilder decided her State should have a similar program so she lobbied for legislation that would allow private providers to deliver social services. The idea didn’t fly, partly, Gilder says, because of her less than tactful comments about government-run social programs. She could have backed off, but Gilder was determined that this program had to start. Without a State contract, without clients, without funding, and with no relevant experience, she created “Washington Works,” a non-profit program to help women on welfare get into the workforce. Unpaid, in unknown territory, and strongly criticized by social work professionals, Gilder raised money, donated money herself, recruited staff, designed training and support systems, enrolled trainees, and convinced companies to give her graduates a chance at good jobs. |
Today, Washington Works’ stringent training in life management, work skills, and job-getting, and its long-term support system are being copied widely. There’s a waiting list of potential trainees, growing financial support, and graduates in jobs at companies such as Microsoft, Nintendo and the Pacific Science Center. Gilder is sure there’s a connection between her own family’s well-being and the fate of other women’s families. “There is a feeling out there that women on welfare don’t care, don’t have the same aspirations that others have,” she says. Ginny Gilder knows that’s wrong, and she’s put her own skills and resources on the line to help make other women’s aspirations realities. |
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