GOOD JOB!

It has been a little over two years since I walked through the front door of the Transition Center. I was anxious and nervous because of the huge responsibility I felt toward the people in our community. I have been married to a logger for 16 years and thus have experienced the highs and lows of the timber industry. We are from Aberdeen, Washington and we moved to Ketchikan six years ago when our town turned into a ghost town due to reductions in the logging industry. So every person I came into contact with from the mill (KPC) reminded me of the feelings and experiences my own family has endured several times. I was determined to do the best job I could do for each and every person that walked through the door.

In the end, it is the job you have done that has impressed me most-- I am very proud of each and every one of you! When I think of all of you, some of the words that come to my mind are pride, courage, strength, and determination. It has been my absolute pleasure to be able to contribute in a small way to each and every one of your dreams and goals.

It is important to acknowledge not only the worker but also each and every person the layoff effected. This is my chance to praise the spouses or partners and their children for the encouragement and support that was given in order to achieve the family's goals.

As a team at the Center, our first priority was to serve our neighbors and friends in our community. We (clients and staff together) have set records of accomplishment and established a new standard toward which other transition centers can strive. You will not find a more talented and caring group of people than the team at the Ketchikan Career Transition Center. My thanks to all the past and present team members responsible for this success:

Amy Sullivan-King, Gary Benner, Brenda Jacobson, Jennifer Kiem, Brian Ammend, Catherine Ferguson, Doug Giles, Noni Woodruff, Paul Lamm, Jerry Collins, Lani Robb, Carolyn Stamm, Dave Sharman, Carol Lee Hall, Carrie Entwit, Maxine Doyle, Wendy Ness, and Tracy White.

Please come see us at our new location or give us a call-- we will have the coffeepot on!

Peri Shapansky, Community Development Specialist II

THANK YOU ALL!

I would like to take this time to thank all of you with whom I have had the good fortune to work. The workers from the mill, the staff here at the center, and the people in the community. I have been lucky to be in a place were I could keep in touch with all the people I worked with at the mill. I have gotten to know people I had not known before, while keeping in touch with the ones I'd had as friends.

It is hard to believe that two years have passed. The time has gone by so fast. When I first took this job I had no idea what I was in for, but I can say it was nothing like I thought it would be. To see what determined people can do is just amazing. The list of successes would fill a book. I have watched people start new lives, learn new trades and move to new towns. All these things can be scary but at the same time exciting. When everything is said and done all the credit goes to you, the people that did all the work and made the changes. All I can say is THANK YOU for letting me be a part of it all.

Paul Lamm, Peer Counselor

ALOHA!

Everyone remembers Hawaii 5-0 and Magnum PI, right? Jack Lord's plastic hair never moving an inch in the trade winds, Magnum always trying to escape "The Lads…"

Silly programs like those plus the episode when the Brady Bunch goes to Hawaii never adequately convey the true spirit of Aloha I learned while growing up on the Island of Oahu.

"Aloha" is just the perfect word for conveying what it is that all of us wish we could say, at all those profoundly important moments, if only we were brilliantly articulate. It's "Hello," "Goodbye", "I love you," "Until we meet again," "Congratulations" and everything in between.

One popular, unspoken expression of aloha is the flower lei. At high school graduations the graduates' heads are literally buried beneath piles of leis. If we were in Hawaii, flower leis would be in order at this significant moment in time. Being just a tad shy of flowers here in Ketchikan, it's a bit tough to demonstrate this spirit of aloha in any way other than simply wishing all I've come to know a great big…

AAAAAALLLLLOOOOOOOOOOOOHAAAAA!!

Lani Robb, Vocational Counselor

YOU DID IT!

I want to express my appreciation to all who have made my time here at KCTC so special. Although the KCTC staff worked for a variety of different agencies, they quickly formed an extremely dedicated team. My thanks to the peer counselors, the vocational counselor, and community development specialists for always going that extra mile for our clients. It has been a pleasure working with each and every one of you.

A special thanks to the KPC employees for the opportunity to assist in your transition to new careers, new jobs, new communities or new phases of your lives. Congratulations on your accomplishments!

Please contact me if I can be of any of any assistance in the future.

Carolyn Stamm, Employment Consultant

YOUR BUSINESS-ONWARD & UPWARD

Endings are only new beginnings…And so it is with your Ketchikan Business Assistance Center, here at the Ketchikan Career Transition Center.

The bad news is that the KPC/JTPA sponsored two-year Business Assistance program contract will end with the closure of KCTC (June 30th). The good news is that business counseling and assistance sponsored by the Ketchikan Gateway Borough has begun, and is available from the Ketchikan SBDC. Rick Leibowitz is the Business Counselor there, and he can be reached at 225-1388.

I will continue business counseling for an affordable fee at my personal business here in Ketchikan. I can be reached at 225-0948 or e-mail rackemup@ktn.net

It has been my pleasure meeting and working with each of you in exploring and developing your business interests during the past year and a half. I will depart wishing you every success in the years to come. Onward and upward !!! Thank you for the privilege of serving you.

Dave Sharman, Business Counselor

AMAZING FEAT

It began as a Memorandum of Agreement between the Division of Community & Rural Development, Alaska State Department of Community & Regional Affairs and the Ketchikan Pulp Company for provision of re-employment and training assistance at the Ketchikan Career Transition Center.

The Ketchikan Career Transition Center Management Committee Mission Statement

is:

"The Committee is committed to provide programs, guidance, and oversight to KCTC in a way that supports and identifies re-employment, retraining, relocation and support, and overall social well being."

"The Committee will serve as a liaison between workers and local, state, and federal entities in a way that will provide outreach and advocacy on behalf of affected workers and families directed toward achieving self-sufficiency."

The original Committee members were: Gary Benton, IUOE; Paul Lamm, AWPPW; Amy King, KPC Management; Lauri Zadina, KPC non-union workers, and Vera Plumb, IBEW.

In looking back over these beginnings (kind of stiff in black and white print,) it is gratifying to see that their goals were so strongly defined that KCTC's motto became FRIENDS HELPING FRIENDS.

Thanks to everyone involved through the development and working of the Center, both clients and staff. We have achieved some remarkable firsts. Most notably, a fantastic 96.7% success rate of either re-employment, completing training, or retirement. Everyone who stepped through the doors at KCTC, as clients, staff, or committee members, can be very proud of their part in this endeavor and deserve to share in its success.

Maxine Doyle, Interim Direct

STILL FRIENDS

I hope I always greeted you with a smile as you walked in the door of the Center! I have enjoyed working at the Center and for KPC so very much. More than that, I feel so lucky for all the new friends I've made. If you see me on the street please don't hesitate to say hello-- I know I won't! Good luck to everyone on the new paths you've chosen for yourselves.

Carrie Entwit, Front Receptionist

FAREWELL!

To those of you who have found a new life and a new career in a new community, I say, "Farewell." You have endured a transition that has resulted positively in your life. w To those of you who have found a new career in this community I say,"Farewell." Though you are still here and I may still meet you at the grocery store, you have managed to become employed in a (hopefully) satisfying new job, maintaining your residency in our beautiful little town.

To those of you who have not found a new job but are in a new community I say, "Farewell." You have made a change not only in your job status but also in your residency. You are still in transition and my wish of farewell applies to you most. I hope you will find what you are searching for.

To those of you who have not found a new job and choose to remain in our community I say, "I hope I see you soon." Someday you may come to the Job Center after the Transition Center at Mile 7 N. Tongass closes. May you fare well as you move through the many stages of transition-- from once being employed by LP to whatever else changes along the way. You may have the most to talk about as you watch our community transition too. We in turn may learn the most about how to "run" a transition center from folks like you.

To those of you who are still employed by KPC I say, "Farewell." I hope your efforts to remain in the industry will prove to be worthwhile. You will be helping the industry to stay alive.

Doug Giles, ESS1 Ketchikan Job Center

THE MORNING GUY

Since this will be our last newsletter I would like to let everyone know how much I will miss the conversations about the future and the morning visits I shared with so many of you. It has been over two years since the Center opened its doors and it has been my good fortune to be a part of its activities. As our motto says, "Friends Helping Friends": I will miss doing that. Even though the center will not be located across from the pulp mill any longer, some of the people and most of the services will still be available at their new location.

I hope everyone finds exactly what they're looking for, if they haven't already. I know some of you have and that makes my time spent at the center worthwhile. I would like to thank all of you for your patience while we learned along with you, of all the benefits available.

I am truly going to miss the visits, the phone calls, and comradeship that is part of the Center.

Sincerely, Jerry Collins Peer Counselor

HOPE & SURPRISE

The past couple years since the mill closed have been scary for most of you, and for some, even tragic. I hope that I was one of those people who made a positive difference in your lives; someone who gave you a smile when you felt sad, was a friend when you felt alone, or provided hope for the future when you needed it most.

As I was born and raised in Ketchikan and my father was one of the men who helped construct the mill as one of their first employees (so many years ago), I too was connected to KPC. I watched my father's eyes fill with tears when he talked about those days and the hope it brought this town and many families. I felt your pain through his.

It has been with great pride that I have served as part of the important TEAM at the KCTC, which stood by you, and assisted you with your new beginnings. Change can be difficult and fear of the unknown looms larger than life. I have a verse I would like to share with you that gives me strength and hope:

I make this day a day of BEGINNING This is a time of beginning again. I will not waste my energy by looking back and longing for other days and other times. Today I have the courage to go forward in life, expecting good to unfold. There are times when circumstances change, when relationships change, when things I have taken for granted are no longer the same. These times are times that can be extremely difficult unless I have trust in the unchanging care and guidance of my Higher Power. Today I am ready to release every thought that binds me to the limited beliefs of yesterday. I am no longer held in bondage of the past. Today I see myself in the world, free from limitations.

When you view life and it's many challenges as a test, or a series of tests, you begin to see each issue you face as an opportunity to grow, hopefully rising above what is challenging you. My heart smiles when I think of how many of you I helped to move forward in your lives, starting new beginnings, feeling the fear yet moving beyond it. Thank you for sharing that with me. Thank you for letting me help.

Your neighbor, Your friend, and Your Employment Specialist, Noni Woodruff

HURDLES! GOALS! SUCCESS!

Life gives us the opportunity to jump through many hoops and hurdles as we endure difficult times and consider opportunities. Please be assured we have and will continue to serve as a liaison between workers and local, state, and federal entities for your needs and requests for retraining, re-employment, relocation and support. Following through with your choices is a gratifying experience. For me, it has been a rewarding experience to be on the KCTC staff team. Good luck and best wishes to each of you for continued success!!

Carol Lee Hall, Administrative Clerk II

MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU!

Hey! May you always experience the connection 7X24! It has been my pleasure for the past few years to offer you computer and online instructions to assist you in your career searches and your educational goals. You've all, both staff and clients, been diligent students and warm and personable folks to teach. I have enjoyed reading about all the successes as you have braved the technology and gone, not without fear but with heart, into the future, into cyberspace.

It has been most enjoyable posting your monthly newsletter online, keeping me in touch with your doings, and keeping you in touch wherever you are. This site will remain up for your use and reference until the end of the year. You can always access it at:   http://www.cybrrcat.com/jtpo/jtpoindex.html .

Your WebGoddess, Pennelope Goforth