The Choice Group

Rita Dee has been helping individuals navigate their personal and professional challenges since joining The Choice Group as a counselor in 2015. One of her clients is Adele Lampley, who has been with her current employer in the food industry for seven years, thanks in part to the support and guidance she has received from Rita. Adele has taken on more responsibility throughout her employment. She started in utilities and quickly moved to making chips, preparing taco shells, keeping the dining area clean and sanitized, and even setting up catering. The employees at Adele’s place of employment loudly greet patrons when they enter, which is a perfect fit for her personality. She loves to welcome customers and never misses the opportunity to do so. As her counselor, Rita has helped Adele navigate the challenges of her job and gain practical tools and strategies to manage the demands of her job. One such example is when she campaigned for a user-friendly timer to ensure Adele could successf...

 Meet Matt Tyrrell!  Matt has been with The Choice Group for about two years and has carried a varied caseload throughout that time, working with several different clients through The Choice Group’s Wounded Warrior Program as well as carrying a Vocational Counseling caseload.  Matt is the newest member of our Benefits Counseling team. His interest in benefits counseling was piqued while working with clients who wanted to know more about how their earnings might affect their Social Security and Medicaid benefits. Matt’s interest led him to inquire about learning more about that particular field.   Matt recently completed his certification as a Work Incentives Benefit Practitioner through Cornell University. Way to go Matt, and welcome to the Benefits Counseling team! 

Sean and Nancy began working together in 2014 where they were able to find him a position at a local grocery store. The store was then bought out, along with many others, and converted to a Kroger. Luckily, Sean was able to secure his position and began work at the Kroger in August of 2018. At the time, he was in the follow along program and Nancy was able to help him apply to the position at Kroger so he could continue working. Sean went into PES in 2018 so that Nancy could help him apply for the position and learn how they expected him to do his Courtesy Clerk position. Nancy helped him through this transition and then Sean went back into follow along. When Nancy and Sean first started working together, he was interested in working in a grocery store, but there were only two in the area. Sean had to stay in the area for work because he relies on his parents for transportation, which was a bit challenging but ended up working out just fine. Since beginning his work back...

Rachel, vocational counselor serving the hampton roads area, began working with Stacey Whitter in the Summer of 2016. S tacey completed the Project SEARCH program and was able to try out different internships throughout the hospital in which he interned for. He did a great job in all 3 of his internships, but, really enjoyed working in Food Services/Patient Foods. Rachel and Stacey quickly realized that one of Stacey's strengths was his ability to connect with people and bring joy to any work environment. Looking at his skills and interests, they really wanted to find Stacey a job where he could be himself and work alongside others who share the same values. Rachel first started working with YNot Italian in the summer of 2016 to find a client, through The Choice Group, to work for them. That is when Stacey found and landed his current position there! YNot Italian has always been a big supporter of disability awareness, especially during the month of October which is National Dis...

Rachel McGregor began working with Jamalerri in the summer of 2014. He has been working in his current position since the summer of 2015. When the grocery store he was working at closed, he was picked up by another grocery store and has been working there beginning in the summer of 2018. In his initial job search, Jamalerri wanted an employer he was comfortable with. He had some work experience in a grocery store in high school and knew he enjoyed the environment. He worked in 3 different rotations while in Project SEARCH and learned what he enjoyed and did not enjoy about different jobs. Jamalerri went on a few interviews and was offered other positions, but did not feel those offers were right for him. Once he interviewed for the position at the grocery store and was offered the job, he knew it was the right job for him. Upon being offered the job at the grocery store, Jamalerri had to overcome some communication barriers. He had been issued an iPod to help with communication, b...

Rachel McGregor began working with Samantha Hasty in the summer of 2017 where she found work at a local navy base. Samantha started working with her current employer in the summer of last year. Samantha’s job tasks include w iping down tables, working in the dish room, interacting with guests, putting away clean dishes away, and maintain the dining area on the naval base. Samantha has made some major achievements working in her position including receiving a customer service award from her employer as well as gaining  independence and confidence.  Samantha has such a outgoing and friendly personality. Working in an atmosphere like the naval base allows her to communicate with many different people in a day. She is able to socialize and enjoy herself while working hard.  Samantha began participating in Project SEARCH where she completed 3 internships in 3 different areas and discovered that she had a passion f...

William was referred to The Choice Group by Vocational Counselor, Susan Bohache, with the Virginia Department of Aging and Rehabilitative Services in April 2016 and was paired with Job Coach Ali Dodd and they soon found a position available at a local IHop in Chesapeake in July of 2016 but had to resign upon his families relocation. He rejoined in hopes of finding another job in Virginia Beach after his family relocated in April of 2017. William has been working with his vocational counselor Heidi beginning again in August of 2017 when he restarted services through DARS and began working with The Choice Group again. Assessments were tried initially in a grocery store, bagging groceries, collecting carts and cleaning bathrooms as well as working as a dishwasher at a local restaurant. His job coach conducted research in hopes of finding William a position somewhere where he would feel most comfortable and thrive. A position at the Founders Inn, for a Steward, came available and Willi...

Heidi Chaney began working with Valerie in October of 2017. Valerie was referred to The Choice Group by The Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services (DARS) to help her get back to work. Along with the help of her DARS counselor Kara Leavell and with the support of her family and friends she was ready to move forward. Valerie had gone to school 30 years ago to learn office skills and had worked at the local shipyard ordering parts for ship repair but was laid off and had not worked in 15 years. Valerie had overcome many challenges in her life and career such as being paralyzed from the waist down since the age of 18 and was not going to let being laid off deter her from finding work again. With the help of her job coach, Valerie decided that working as a front desk receptionist or as a greeter of some type would best fit her needs and desires. After taking a situational assessment at a local YMCA it was confirmed that Valerie’s desire to move forward in the job search ...

Vocational Counselor Rachel McGregor has been working with her client, Austin since June of 2016. Already a hard worker, Austin gained work experience as a high school student at Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital where he impressed the managers and staff with his initiative and endurance. So when Rachel started working with him as a postgraduate, Austin had already gained an affinity for food service from his experience at Sentara.    The biggest obstacle Austin faced when landing a job, was finding the right match. They decided to apply to many different types of jobs since his work experience was somewhat limited up to this point. Austin “is capable of so much and knew exactly what he wanted to do,” said Rachel about her experience working with him. “I think it can be hard for younger individuals to find employment in their area of interest because often times they don’t have the experience needed for those positions.” However, Austin was more prepared tha...

After volunteering at the American Library in Paris and earning their Bachelor’s degree in IT, Kian and Niall had a clear idea of what type of job they wanted. When they relocated to Charlottesville, VA, they began searching for jobs within the IT or data entry field.  A year later, both Kian and Niall were hired at the bookstore on the University of Virginia campus to sort and package textbook orders for incoming students. They quickly adapted to their work environment and impressed their coworkers with their stellar work ethic. Four weeks later when their contract ended, Kian and Niall did not give up and continued to search for their dream job.  They were introduced to a manager at the University of Virginia, who saw their attention to detail and offered the men positions as Temporary Data Technicians through UVA Temps. Within several months, Kian and Niall redacted years of research data, far exceeding the expectations of their coworkers and supervisors. They quickly t...

This story will not contain the boring, overused words “amazing” or “awesome” to describe the magnanimous character that defines Will Zentmyer.  This young man was teamed up with an excellent support crew to explore the vocational world of Charlottesville, VA.  This was a very challenging case, and Will did not know what type of work he wanted to do.  There were several unknowns to this equation, but the one given was Will’s determination.  He was able to try several different jobs including warehouse, restaurant, garden nursery, and hotel work.  This went on for a while, and Will exhibited the greatest success working in a hotel as a housekeeping aide. With this in mind, his Vocational Counselor visited almost every hotel in Charlottesville to advocate for Will’s extraordinary charisma and abilities.  Several hotels declined the opportunity for Will to work there, while others said they needed to think about it.  All of the hotels that needed to...

Mariam was working a retail job for 5 years before she came to The Choice Group looking for a change. Having lots of experience in the retail space, she was skilled at sales and conversing with customers but wanted something different and challenging. With a fun, talkative, and outgoing personality, Mariam wanted a position where she could interact with a lot of different people and have interesting conversations. She began working with Alexandra, her vocational counselor, in October of 2017. Together they found a position for food demonstrations at Advantage Solutions. Having a personal interest in cooking at home, this was a job that intrigued her. In her position as an Event Specialist, she is able to combine her retail experience with her love of interacting with customers.  Initially, she was shy drawing people to her demo station, but with her extended and studied knowledge of the products she’s offering, her confidence grew. Stimulated by her active role ...

Katie, a vocational counselor for The Choice Group in the Richmond area, has been working with her client, Casey, since June of last year. Relatively new to the workforce, Casey’s main obstacle was finding a position having limited work experience. Along with his mom and his DARS counselor, Katie and Casey sat down to discuss his previous jobs, training experiences, transportation options, hours of availability, and areas of interest. Where would he even want to work? With an easy going, positive and flexible attitude, it wasn’t hard to find Casey an employer willing to hire him on! He soon found a position at the Chick-fil-A in Mechanicsville that met with of his availability and transportation options. When he began training, Katie worked with him on his basic food preparation tasks for the restaurant as well as customer service skills such as eye contact, multi-tasking and prioritizing in a fast-paced restaurant environment. Katie also worked with the employer, educating ...

Meet Brianna, our newest team member and Certified WISA Specialist who began training this week! 

Darya "Dasha" Bell worked with our Northwest Manager, Adrienne Rudacille. After her experience, she created a super cute and insightful PowerPoint about what her job coach actually does day in and out! We think she nailed it!!!

We'd like to introduce some great individuals that just joined our team!  Siera Ellis Administrative Program Support Specialist Chris McElfresh Administrative Program Support Specialist Dana O'Connell Vocational Technician - Richmond

Chantile has been working at Elite Laundry since December 2016.  Before coming to Elite Laundry, she was a student in the Career Development Program at Norview High School.  After high school, Chantile participated as an intern in the Project SEARCH program, a national program that helps young adults with disabilities transition from school to work.  The program is a collaboration between Norfolk Public Schools, Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, The Department of Aging and Rehabilitative Services and The Choice Group, an employment service organization. Chantile comes in every Tuesday morning and goes through the hangers that have been returned by our customers. Each week there are hundreds of hangers that are sent out with tablecloths.  Many of our customers return these hangers to be reused.  This helps provide a job for Chantile and also keeps them out of the landfill.  These hangers need all of their tags removed as well as the tubes that are dirt...

Nolan Speichinger has been working with Brian Rogers since December of last year. After determining that applying for an AbilityOne job would be the best strategy for Brian at the recommendation of his DARS counselor, they applied for jobs through a government contracting agency located in Northern Virginia. The  AbilityOne  program "is among the largest sources of employment, on Federal contracts, for individuals who are blind or have significant disabilities in the United States.” Soon, they found a great position for Brian at a government facility in Washington D.C.! There were many new challenges that Brian had to face with his new job, one of them being transportation. His daily commute in and out of the city usually averages one and a half to two hours and involves getting on the bus to the Franconia/Springfield station, getting off at the metro station, and walking to his nightly shift on time. When he returns from work, the bus is no longer in service and has ...

I began working with Brittany Heath in October 2017, just after she had been offered a position with Walmart on Southpoint Parkway in Fredericksburg, VA in the Maintenance Department. She had worked with another job coach previously and I began working with her once she got the job! Brittany likes to keep things neat and tidy and this position was a great fit for her. Brittany had a wonderful trainer who helped her learn her job duties and answered all of her questions. Brittany picked up her job duties quickly and was moved to follow along services a mere two months after starting her job.  The management staff at Walmart are all very pleased with Brittany’s performance and praise her every time I visit the site. She recently began assisting with the training of new maintenance staff coming on board and says often how much she really likes her job. She is currently working part-time hours, up to 24 hours per week, usually three 8-hour days. Tricia Ann Hall Vocational Couns...

Keaton and his grandmother, Faye | Source  New River CC During the Fall of 2014, Keaton Hanks was a volunteer with a new and emerging consulting group in the Pulaski area of southwestern Virginia. Around that time, Keaton began working with his job coach at The Choice Group through Community Support Services. His objective was to gain employment as the consulting group's part-time administrative assistant by working on his customer service and administrative assistance skills with his coach, Caitlin Igor. Together they worked on phone etiquette, data entry, and in-person customer interaction skills while he was volunteering at the consulting agency. After several months of progress, Keaton was hired as the part-time administrative assistant at the consulting agency where he was volunteering! He and his job coach continued to work on reading and interpreting detailed instructions to complete data entry projects as well as advancing his already improved customer service skills. ...