The Choice Group

For over two decades The Choice Group has dedicated its time to helping our clients find fulfillment in the workplace. As counselors, it has been a joy seeing our hundreds of clients reach milestones and share their achievements over the years.  Ericka Neville is one of our managers for the Hampton Roads area. It is not uncommon for Ericka’s employees to thrive when they enter into the workforce --Billy Kraus is no different. Billy has been with The Choice Group since December 2020. He started as a vocational counselor and since been promoted to a Senior Counselor. Our counselors provide a safe, accepting and non-judgmental space for our clients. Counseling at The Choice Group is a win-win—allowing counselors like Billy to work together with his group to develop in the individuals a sense of confidence and well-being. Along with working as a counselor, Billy leads a program under our PEERS Program. His program focuses on developing social skills for students to make and keep friend...

Heather started working with Alyssa in May of 2019 when Alyssa participated in the DARS (Department for Aging & Rehabilitative Services) Pre-ETS program. Pre-ETS stands for Pre-Employment Transition Services.  Heather and Alyssa continued to work together under DARS through situational assessments to try out various tasks. Two things were clear: Alyssa loves to help people and to follow a routine. In October 2019, she was hired at Stand Up Coffee! During assessments, it was determined that Alyssa does well with a rountine and likes to be around people or helping people. It was determined that Alyssa's preferences were to work on a sales floor or in a production type of position. Together, Alyssa and Heather made a list of employers in the town of Orange where Alyssa could get transportation. One day, while Heather was contacting employers to ask about open positions and discuss Alyssa's abilities, she called Stand Up Coffee. About 30 minutes prior to the phone ca...

Meet Diane, a young woman with dreams of helping others. Diana and her counselor, Justin, sought out employment at Home Recovery Home-Aid, an at-home health service provider, and Diane has worked there for the last five months. First, Diane and Justin worked together to identify what age group she enjoyed working with the most. They then visited several different health clinics/centers that were hiring so that she could get a better understanding about how much work and support went into taking care of people. Diane and Justin also worked together to ensure that the job was a great match with her personality, because she is very shy. They both sat down and met with people at each center and together led different conversations so that she could learn ways to communicate with others. Her determination to do good and find meaningful employment played a huge role in her position. Diane is really dedicated to helping others and also providing meaningful long term care to others j...

When you walk into the Kroger in Martinsville, Virginia, there is a Courtesy Clerk who stands out in the front end.  He says hello to each customer coming and going, he is often dancing, and he always has a smile on his face.  Danny has been working for Kroger for almost 3 years and the love for his position is evident.  He puts his natural customer service skills to use during every shift while bagging groceries, retrieving merchandise, and pulling carts.   Before working at Kroger, his work history consisted of sheltered employment working below minimum wage.  Danny worked with his Vocational Counselor, Teresa Anderson, to try different jobs to see what he felt would be a good fit.  He then worked with his job coach to complete applications and interviews, which led to being hired by this employer.  Teresa helped him learn bagging techniques and handling the multi-tasking his position involves.  Danny also learned about parking lot sa...

No Wasted Energy Sometimes arriving at a successful outcome includes some experiences that appear unsuccessful.  The truth is that all experiences are learning opportunities and better prepare us for the experience that will be successful.   Daniel’s first job working with his vocational counselor was at a fast-food restaurant.  The schedule included some afternoon shifts and the pace was fast, too fast.  Daniel experienced stress and migraines, understanding that he was not meeting the employer’s needs.  He and his vocational counselor, together with his counselor at the Department for Aging and Rehabilitative Services, decided to look for another position. They found one at a local nursing facility working as a dietary aide.  Daniel started in September 2018 with consistent morning shifts, and has since transitioned to any shift.  He is one of the most valuable members of their team.  He feels supported and appreciated, and his ...