Bridgett Went from Welfare to Work and Put Her Son Through College!

In December 1986, Bridgett O'Neill was a single mother living on welfare. Three months earlier, she successfully received her GED and now wanted to turn all her studying and preparation into employment opportunities to improve her situation and create a future for her young son. So Bridgett enrolled in Goodwill's clerical and administrative training courses.

Sadly, during the third week of the program, Bridgett's grandmother passed away. “It was a very difficult time. She was like a mother to me,” Bridgett said. But with the support and kindness of the Goodwill staff and her friends within the program, she made it through. “They provided me daycare, transportation and meal allotments when I needed them the most. Who could NOT appreciate something like that?!"

Bridgett went on to shine in the clerical training program, and shortly after completing her coursework in June of 1987, the skills she learned at Goodwill paid off. Bridgett found a job as a secretary at the Hines-Rinaldi Funeral Home in Silver Spring , MD. This job led to a variety of other jobs at which Bridgett excelled. In 1995, Bridgett decided to leave the funeral industry and move into the healthcare field. After trying numerous times to secure a position with Prudential Healthcare, she was finally hired as a clerk in Prudential's Community Care division. Bridgett was so excited about the new opportunity that she actually accepted a pay cut because the job offered better healthcare benefits for herself and her son in addition to a brighter future. Prudential management was so impressed with Bridgett that after only two weeks on the job, they promoted her to Recertification Coordinator and gave her a 23% pay raise! Bridgett was now responsible for helping to oversee Prudential Healthcare member retention.

Bridgett loved her new job and it gave her the flexibility she desperately needed as a single mom. Unfortunately, Prudential downsized in December of 1997. While they valued Bridgett's talents and offered her another position in Jacksonville , Florida , Bridgett knew she couldn't pull her son out of high school to move 1,000 miles away and start over, so she left Prudential. However, her integrity and resilience paid off when she was immediately hired as a Provider Relations Representative for Visiting Nurses of Washington. From there she went on to work as a Field Enrollment Contractor for the Maryland Health Choice Program. It was here that Bridgett was recruited by the Director of Marketing for Amerigroup to come and work for them as the Community Relations Coordinator for Southern Maryland. Bridgett was now responsible for providing grass roots assistance and healthcare education programs to community service organizations that serve disadvantaged neighborhoods. After years of hard work, Bridgett had finally found her dream job.

She remains with Amerigroup to this day, but now also services the Northwest Washington, DC community in addition to southern Maryland.

Bridgett's success not only gave her a new life, it also allowed her to put her son Curtis through college. He graduated from Bowie State University in May of this year and is looking at a bright future for himself and his family. Bridgett has certainly come a long way from being a welfare mother and she graciously credits Goodwill for helping her.

“The caring, support and motivation I received at Goodwill of Greater Washington helped me prepare for the obstacles ahead. The Goodwill program was the first step to the beginning of my new life!” Bridgett told us. “They allowed me to become more independent and self-sufficient! The Goodwill programs really work!”

Please help Goodwill of Greater Washington build hope and dignity for more people like Bridgett by clicking here. In addition to helping others, you'll also receive a nice tax deduction in the New Year!

Happy Holidays from Bridgett and everyone at Goodwill of Greater Washington!