Partygoers packed into the Les Wagner Community Room on Thursday, May 18, to celebrate and say goodbye to this year’s work crew: Landon, Austin, David and Zander. All four student workers traveled from different area high schools including Battle, Hickman, Hallsville, and Rock Bridge to further their vocational skills and prepare for future careers through janitorial experience at the BCFR Main Office.

Community Skills Specialist Caelum Johnson manages the work crew, and said, “Everyone came from a different school and no one really knew each other. But they started to gel more and had a great ending to the year.”
The team spent extra time promoting the event through word of mouth around the office and a very large crowd was the payoff. Approximately 50 people attended the big event including friends, family members and BCFR staff.

Landon and David plan to participate in the Seamless Transition through Enhanced Partnerships Program (STEP) in September 2023 for their senior year of high school. When asked if he was excited about his future plans, Landon said, “I really like coming here every day. Who knows, maybe you’ll see one of us again.”

Austin graduated from Hallsville High School last month and had the goal of finding full-time employment “as soon as possible” after graduation. He started working with the BCFR Individual Placement and Support (IPS) program in May and was just offered a full-time janitorial position at the University of Missouri.

“The purpose is to further their vocational skills and prepare for a future career,” said Life and Work Connections Program Manager Sarah Anderson. “And we delivered on getting him (Austin) into the workforce!”