August 2014 – AT&T Pioneers

Florida Pioneers take the ALS Challenge

It may have started with Melissa McCormick. Although we have not seen that video. But it quickly spread throughout the ranks of the Florida Pioneer Leadership. Here’s the proof.

Danny McCormick http://youtu.be/UeWD-WV91NM

Tim Syverson http://youtu.be/QaBUsH6bPlU

Doug Mooney http://youtu.be/LgrPp3sKXi8

Geoff Ellison http://youtu.be/j5scqSFhxFw

Donna Sanders http://youtu.be/N_X9dvz8tRI

We’ll add more as soon as we receive the videos, unless of course they chicken out.

Everglades LMC Receives Volunteer Award

[vc_row el_position=”first last”] [vc_column] [vc_column_text el_position=”first last”]

Congratulations to the Everglades Life Member Club for receiving the 2014 Volunteer Recognition Award from the Chapman Partnership.

Since 1995, The Chapman Partnership for the Homeless in Miami has been assisting homeless men, women, and children in transitioning off the streets of Miami-Dade County and on their way to attaining greater stability and self-sufficiency in their lives. The Everglades Life Member Club has provided school supplies, food and clothing for the clients at the center along with serving meals and volunteering for other duties and functions.

[/vc_column_text] [/vc_column] [/vc_row] READ MORE

Pioneers Partner With Company and Florida DCF for Skills to Go

Network Manager Sandy Thomas walks up to each student, looks them square in the eye, then shakes their hand. While shaking, she gives the students a verbal assessment of the hand shake. A good, firm handshake is essential, she tells the students sitting around the room. That was just one of several lessons Thomas, along with several other AT&T Pioneers, taught the dozen or so students sitting in the room.

Since October of 2013, AT&T Florida Pioneers, along with AT&T External Affairs and the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) have been bringing AT&T Aspire Skills to Go to high school students in Florida’s foster care system. In addition to high school students, there have also been a number of young adults ranging from 18 to 21 years old. Under a recent Florida law, young adults who would have normally aged out of the Florida foster care system have been allowed to remain in the system until reaching 21 years of age.

The AT&T Aspire Skills to Go program is a facet of the AT&T Aspire Mentoring Academy. Skills to Go includes learning modules that cover Decision Making, Financial Literacy, Communications Skills and Career Planning. The topics included in the modules range from “Making Decisions that Work” to Budgeting and writing resumes.

Each day begins in a classroom setting, where students participate in the lessons, watch “Cool Job” videos provided by AT&T, eat lunch, then venture out to an AT&T location for some real life experiences.

The Palm Beach Mixed Club trialed the program in West Palm Beach. They worked with AT&T Mobility employees to bring the students to a local store. There they were greeted by Director of Sales Karl Blanco and Retail Sales Manager Michael Chung. After a short talk by Director Blanco, students went through mock interviews with Chung.

Florida Pioneers Area Vice President Denise Caruso, who coordinated the event for the Palm Bach Council, says, “It was a wonderful experience and I was impressed with the kids and their involvement with wanting to learn real-life lessons.“

With the success of the Palm Beach trial, the Florida Pioneers expanded the program throughout the state. They have held a Skills to Go event in Plantation, with the Broward Council; in Tallahassee and in Tampa with the Tampa Mixed Club.

The chapter, along with External Affairs and DCF, plan on continuing to offer the program to students throughout the state.