The Choice Group

                                     We extend our heartfelt congratulations to Ethan, a distinguished participant in our esteemed Pre-ETS program. Ethan is currently in the second week of his Shielded Metal Arc Welding course at a local community class.  He recently participated in a class contest where participants were challenged to weld two bars to replicate a precise model. Ethan's exceptional craftsmanship shone through, earning him the well-deserved distinction of first place. As the victor, Ethan was awarded his very own DeWalt Grinder! As Ethan nears the culmination of his course, we are thrilled to share that he has secured a position in a paid apprentice program, marking the beginning of an exciting new chapter in his professional journey. Furthermore, we are delighted to announce that Ethan's will then transition into the realm of adult Vocational Rehabilitation services. Plea...

I met Roger Brannon, retired Marine, in March 2018. On May 23, 2016, nine days after his 45 birthday, Roger was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS).  Not the news he expected to be dealing with when planning life at 45 and beyond.  But it didn’t take this strong, brave Marine long to decide what he was going to do with his diagnosis. When the neurologist told Roger that he might have ALS, He researched ALS and was surprised by what he read. The first fact he found was that military veterans are twice as likely to get ALS. This hit home with him. Roger shared with me that when he was in the Marine Corps he made it a point to stay out of the spotlight. He didn’t like to be in the spotlight. He would rather be working in the trenches alongside his fellow Marines. He always put the mission first and personal wellbeing second. But ALS has changed this. He wants to put himself and ALS in the spotlight. “Today, I want to get my story out there—I want ALS to be ...

Cati has been with The Choice Group since February of this year, she serves the Southwest area of Virginia. As a vocational counselor, she loves that her job has given her the ability to make a positive difference in someone's life. Knowing that she has a hand in helping her clients accomplish their employment goals and gain self-confidence through the process is a huge job pay off for Cati. “Helping someone to gain and maintain employment is such a rewarding experience,” she says, and quoting one of her own clients adds, “I don’t dread coming to work.”  Her most memorable experience to date is the first client she ever worked with. “He was able to secure work with a wonderful company and quickly made natural support systems among his coworkers,” she explains. The way his coworkers and peers showed their support for her client was a moving experience. “I was moved not only by the support shown to my client by his peers but also the thoughtfulness and patience of his mana...

Angela Volkening has a client that works in one of the many major grocery store chains in the Richmond area.   When she first started working with him, she said there was a lot of anxiety surrounding interviews and applying for positions in person.   However, he knew he wanted to work for a company that was supportive of people with disabilities.   Originally, he had applied for an order-filling position, however, the store needed help elsewhere and they hired him to be a bagger.   This presented a unique challenge for Angela and her client because he only has the use of one of his arms.   Figuring out how to best set up the bagging station for his needs and how to maneuver the bags were things Angela and her client worked on together when he started working in June of 2016.   Once he saw that he was able to do his job as well as the other baggers he grew in confidence and gets positive feedback from customers.   Now, over a year later, he’s doin...

We'd like to welcome Robin and Rachel, two great additions to the team! Robin Dawkins - Human Resources Manager Rachel Brand - Hampton Roads

James works at North Fork Lumber in Goshen, Virginia. I started working with James in February of 2017 when he started working at North Fork Lumber. Penni from the Department of Aging and Rehabilitation (DARS) in Fishersville was already in contact with the office manager, Paula, and the owner, Will, to set up the original interview to see if stacking lumber was the right fit for James.  After a functional interview, Will offered James a full-time position as Lumber Stacker. The number one focus for the entire lumber yard operation is safety.  The employer wanted to know that James could focus on his job and be safe while doing it.  James is a fast learner and could identify the length and types of wood way before I could! James has a lot of energy and the ability to move quickly.  He is also motivated to earn his own paycheck and does not mind overtime at all!  James’ job duties include stacking lumber that comes from the “green chain” ...

Jason Massenburg Jason and I have worked together for a little over 4 years now. He was assigned to me under situational assessments and did so well at an Office Assistant assessment he was hired on the spot at Home Sweet Home Care in Smithfield. He has been working there for about 4 years. The owner, Shirley McGee, and staff at Home Sweet Home Care are incredibly supportive of Jason and always look out for him. The owner and staff say they love Jason and that he is a joy to have in their office. Jason uses a wheelchair and has left side paralysis so he was initially referred for situational assessments to see what his employment strengths and likes were.  After learning about Jason’s preferences, we did one prior assessment trying silverware rolling, but due to his hand strength and left side paralysis, it was not a good fit. Next, we tried the Office Assistant assessment at Home Sweet Home Care. He did terrifically and the owner was impressed with Jason and with supp...

The Choice Group welcomes our newest counselors to the team! Tricia Hall - NOVA Area Tabatha Clay - Charlottesville Area

We'd like to welcome our two newest Choice Group team members! Claire Adams - Hampton Roads Area Evan Jang - Richmond Area

Nancy McNamara is the Lead Counselor in the Hampton Roads area and has been working at The Choice Group for over four years now.  While she says that she has had many memorable experiences during her time here, one in particular stands out in the last year.   “It was it was a great pleasure to be able to assist a client with multiple felonies who was just released from prison to get back into the workforce doing cabinetmaking which he learned while in prison by working with DARS to promote On the Job Training (OJT) for the client with an employer. I was able to get the employer to give the client a chance,  and he is now successfully in Long-Term Employment Support Services (LTESS). He recently attended a job fair via DARS for people coming out of the prison system and shared his success story and how OJT and working with DARS and The Choice Group helped him re-enter society and the workforce successfully.” She loves seeing her clients grow and succeed...

We'd like to welcome our newest members of The Choice Group Richmond team!  Alexandra Thomas   Vocational Counselor Cliff Carter   Vocational Counselor Lakeshia Ward   Vocational Counselor Mary Chris Warner   Vocational Technician Nolan Speichinger Vocational Counselor

James Mothershead is an intelligent guy.  He is an accomplished academic with both a bachelors and masters degree in Business Administration.  Not only an academic, James put his schooling to good use becoming a successful executive in the financial industry.  He worked in banking for almost 20 years. When I met James he was looking for a new job.  He had just been diagnosed with Spinal Bifida, a condition that can make certain physical movements extremely painful.  Along with the Spinal Bifida, he was also dealing with clinical anxiety and depression. Despite these challenges, James was determined to find employment. Early in the job search, he was having a difficult time locating an employer, everyone kept telling him he was over-qualified. In addition, his Spinal Bifida required him to find a position where he could accomplish his work sitting down or with very minimal movement.  He kept at it and found a job working as a cashier clerk at Walmart...

Tranisha Mitchell started working as an Operating Room Attendant at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital in August 2016.  She works in the Surgical Prep and recovery unit, in a unique position that was created exclusively for her due to her outstanding work as an intern through Project SEARCH. When she initially began Project SEARCH she had moved several times.  With every move came the difficulty of figuring out how to navigate a new local bus route.  Tranisha, an independent go-getter, wasn’t going to let navigating a bus schedule get in her way.  She adapted quickly to her new surroundings and figured out how to effectively take public transportation to the hospital. Tranisha is a top notch employee at the Hospital because she is compassionate and great with people.  She grew up helping her family members with their medical needs, so a transition to serving her community working at the Hospital felt natural.  Tranisha is not only compassionate and gr...

As Vocational Counselors with The Choice Group, we provide on-the-job training and coaching services to assist individuals in meeting their employment goals in a variety of settings.  We often provide hands-on training, and we do our best to blend into each environment, so we wear the same Personal Protective Equipment, or PPE, as the clients we work with to be safe on the job site. Pictured above, Rosemary wears the required uniform for working with her client at a university bakery, complete with chef’s hat, chef’s jacket, and slip resistant shoes.  Becky wears safety equipment required for working with her client at a lumber yard, complete with hard hat, ear plugs, and steel-toed boots.  We enjoy working with our clients to help them be successful in meeting their goals!

Agata lost her vision a few years ago which prevented her from working. She worked hard to become allocated to this change and once she was ready, I worked with her to conduct assessments to see what types of work she would enjoy. We conducted three assessments in food production and the last one went so well, Melinda at Sugar Fix in Ashland allowed Agata to come in and work as an intern! This experience is invaluable in assisting Agata with becoming acclimated to working again. Agata’s tasks include cutting cookies, greeting customers and assisting with folding boxes. Agata has a passion for baking and cooking. She comes from a Polish family and loves making Polish food at home. Due to Agata’s loss of vision, people may think that cooking may not be possible, but with the appropriate accommodations and modifications she can! I have truly enjoyed working with Agata and Sugar Fix Bakery. It is wonderful that Ms. Melinda has given us this opportunity. With the skills that Agata is le...

The Choice Group is involved not only with clients and employers but we work side by side with our communities in order to overcome obstacles we face when seeking to further disability employment opportunities.  One of our biggest obstacles is transportation. A lot of our clients rely on public transportation or arranged transportation (CARE van), and in the Culpeper, Virginia, public transportation is less widely available than in cities. The Choice Group is working in collaboration with agencies, companies, and nonprofits that are all trying to improve transportation in the Culpeper County, Fauquier County/Warrenton, Madison County, Orange County, and Rappahannock County areas.  We are meeting monthly and working towards developing both ridership surveys and employer focused surveys and we have already shared these surveys with a variety of employers, chamber of commerce committees, and economic development offices throughout these areas. We are hoping to gather en...

We work with employers to make sure their needs are being met and our client is a good fit for the job!

Nina's bubbly personality and people skills make her perfect in the busy MCV Hospital Environment! She loves her job as an elevator operator!

One of our counselors caught this beautiful sunrise at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital on the way to begin Job Site Training with a client. Our ‪Vocational Counselors‬ interact with a variety of people, places, environments, job sites...you name it! It's one of the reasons this job is so rewarding. It's nice when they get to take a moment and enjoy a view like this!

Find out how Raymond found success with The Choice Group by finding work at Richmond's own Bill's Barbecue