Drouin and Glawe Celebrated at Goodwill Breakthrough Awards

FORT MYERS, Fla. - May 27, 2015 - PRLog -- On May 7 Goodwill honored Mike Drouin and Jennifer Glawe at the annual Breakthrough Awards event. The annual event honors businesses and members in the community who have assisted others, or themselves, in overcoming disabilities or barriers on their path to employment and independence. Drouin received the Breakthrough Graduate award, while Glawe received the Breakthrough Achiever of the Year award.

Drouin, who is a third-generation carpenter, worked with his father in the family business. When his father passed away three years ago, the family business began falling apart. After a struggle with addiction, Drouin entered Justin’s Place, a recovery program at St. Matthew’s House. Drouin wanted to stay in the family trade, but on his own terms.

St. Matthew’s House told him about the SWFL Goodwill MicroEnterprise Institute, an intensive training program for people who want to start their own business.

“He was already an excellent worker,” says Elliott Rittenhouse, Goodwill’s director of microenterprise.  “But he didn’t know how to set it up as a business.”

Since completing the MicroEnterprise program, Mike has formed his business, Droun’s Helping Hands, LLC. He’s hired two full-time employees and another part-timer, all of whom are in the St. Matthew’s House recovery for life program. He hopes to expand the business to as many as ten employees, and is studying for the Florida state contractor’s examination, which would allow him to expand into larger projects.

When Jennifer Glawe was referred to Goodwill by Southwest Florida Works, the then 24-year-old had a limited employment history and was struggling to find a job because of a high unemployment rate and a learning disability.  Although Glawe lives independently, she depends on public transportation, another barrier to her self-sufficiency.

After working with a Goodwill occupational skills trainer, Glawe found a right fit when Goodwill’s janitorial/floor care manager Brad Ellena needed a day-shift custodian to work at Lynx Services in North Fort Myers.  Glawe would be the only custodian on the shift, working with limited supervision.

“At first, I wasn’t sure how she would handle working independently, but she’s done an incredible job,” says Ellena.  “It’s a 72,000 square foot facility, and she covers every bit of it.”

It’s been more than three years, and Jennifer still gets rave reviews for her work.

“Everyone in the call center adores her,” says Karen McDaniel, facilities supervisor at Lynx. “She’s always on task and quick to respond to everything.  Really, she’s a joy to work with.”

“I like to stay busy, and it makes me happy to have a job,” says Glawe. “I can pay bills, be on my own, and be more responsible.”

Other Goodwill Breakthrough Award winners include Breakthrough Business of the Year Communication & Data Solutions, and Breakthrough Employer of the Year John Talmage. Goodwill also honored volunteer of the year Amanda Lynch.

Goodwill Industries of Southwest Florida is committed to serving people with disabilities and disadvantages by providing life-changing opportunities to achieve independence.  Revenue generated by Goodwill’s 30 Southwest Florida Retail & Donation Centers is used to support these programs. For more information about Goodwill Industries of Southwest Florida, visit the agency’s website at http://www.goodwillswfl.org.

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