Walmart Makes Commitment to Support Dress for Success SW Florida

December 17, 2012 CONRIC PR

Barbara Dell, Executive Director of Dress for Success SW Florida, is proud to announce that Walmart, presented the local affiliate a $10,000 grant and new computers for the expansion of the Dress for Success Career Center. The grant was immediately put to work to increase the overall workspace. Thanks to Walmart’s support the Career Center now has more space to meet with clients for resume preparation, job search opportunities as well as administrative offices to manage the client programs. A group of Walmart employees from the North Fort Myers store location also donated their time to move furniture and fixtures into the new suite.

Barbara Dell couldn’t be more appreciative of the support Walmart has provided. “Dress for Success SW Florida started the Career Center with just one computer in the reception area.  With this generous donation from Walmart, we will now be able to serve more women who are in need of guidance and support with all phases of the employment process,” says Dell.

The Dress for Success mission is to help both unemployed and underemployed women learn skills to obtain employment.  Once they are employed, the relationship continues by providing clients with monthly meetings to assist them with career advancement. The Career Center is available to all Dress for Success clients. The purpose is to promote confidence and professionalism by providing clients with employment guidance, technological skills and mentoring.

Going Places Network (GPN) sponsored by Walmart is a major Dress for Success program for women who are unemployed. There are several weeks of workshops held three times a year at Southwest Florida Works in both Lee and Collier counties. The workshops are created to prepare and encourage women seeking employment.  Dress for Success Headquartered in New York City oversees 125 affiliates throughout the world. Dress for Success Worldwide received a $2 million grant from Walmart and re-granted to 60 affiliates including Southwest Florida.

Shelley Allman, Market Manager for Fort Myers Walmart says, “We are excited to be a part of Dress for Success SW Florida. We believe in their mission to help women get back on their feet and acquire the skills needed in today’s economy to obtain employment.”

Dress for Success held a Going Places Network graduation at the Holiday Inn Airport at Town Center. This graduation was the first to include women who went through the program in Lee and Collier counties. Graduates opened up and shared stories of their personal obstacles they had to overcome to be more successful in finding employment. Of the 30 women who attended the weekly workshops, 18 women gained employment after completion of the Going Places Network.

For those who continue to seek employment, Dress for Success SW Florida continues to work with them through the Dress for Success Mentoring Program and the Entrepreneurial Spirit Program.

“We feel so fortunate to have Walmart as a valued partner and sponsor for Going Places Network,” says Terrie Scheall, Program Manager. “Thanks to their continued commitment we have been able to provide even more assistance for unemployed or underemployed women in our community,” Scheall adds.

Dress for Success SW Florida is located at 12993 S. Cleveland Ave. Suite 153, Fort Myers, FL in the Pinebrook Plaza.

About Dress for Success

The mission of Dress For Success is to promote the economic independence of disadvantaged women by providing professional attire, a network of support, and the career development tools to help women thrive in work and in life. There are 125 Dress For Success locations in seven countries focused on providing career wardrobes and employment counseling to disadvantaged women. Since starting operations in 1997, Dress for Success Worldwide has helped more than 600,000 women work toward self-sufficiency. For information, email swflorida@dressforsuccess.org, call 239-689-4992 or visit www.DressForSuccess.org/swflorida.

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