Service Canada event promotes career success for local youth
Posted Jul 29, 2010 By Phil Ambroziak
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EMC News - Quite often you have to start off small to make it big.
Ada Bojorquez, a youth services officer at the Ottawa West Service Canada Centre for Youth, stands alongside a billboard showcasing numerous famous Canadians who started off doing odd jobs before eventually finding fame and fortune. In an effort to promote the important skills that can be gained by undertaking odd jobs, the centre held a special event titled "Humble Beginnings" at its Lincoln Fields location.
The Ottawa West Service Canada Centre for Youth (SCCY) is well aware of this fact and is hoping to share its knowledge and expertise with local young people who possess prominent career aspirations.
On July 14, the centre which is located at the Lincoln Fields Galleria hosted a special event titled "Humble Beginnings" in an effort to further drive this point home.
"The purpose of Humble Beginnings is to showcase how certain celebrities and other prominent Canadians got their first jobs and the steps they took to make it where they are today," explained Ada Bojorquez, a youth services officer at the Ottawa West SCCY. "It shows local young people that career planning is important and all the steps you need to take that will ultimately lead you to your dream career."
Humble Beginnings came on the heels of the annual SCCY Odd Job Week, which took place July 5 to 9 and served to promote youth employment by linking young people seeking casual summer employment with employers and homeowners seeking casual help.
Members of the Odd Job Squad, as this group of young workers is referred, are able to earn extra money on top of a regular job or during summer studies.
The July 14 event also provided young people with an opportunity to create their own profiles of where they are today and where they see themselves in the years to come.
"We sent out invitations to our Odd Job Squad members to attend this event so we could further educate them on the potential opportunities that await them," Ms. Bojorquez explained.
"We're also here to offer help with résumé writing and to help them practice for interviews. But, most importantly, we want to make sure they don't become discouraged with their career goals by showing them that even celebrities and people who hold prominent positions in this country all started by flipping burgers, washing windows or mowing lawns, and that there are many valuable things that can be learned by taking on odd jobs such as these."
Ms. Bojorquez used Grey's Anatomy star Sandra Oh, who is originally from Nepean, as an example of how someone who at one time worked at an odd job can make it to the top in her chosen profession.
"She grew up in my neighbourhood and used to do babysitting," she said. "Now, she's an actress on TV and in the movies. She started babysitting to earn extra money it wasn't even a job that had anything to do with acting or theatre."
Ms. Bojorquez explained that many of the celebrity profiles used as examples for the Humble Beginnings event were those of actors and actresses because the centre wanted to be sure to showcase individuals who would be of interest to young people.
"Odd jobs can give young people certain experience they can use to help them in their future careers," she said.
Homeowners or employers interested in using the Ottawa West SCCY's services, as well as youth looking for summer employment, can visit the centre between 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. or call 613-721-1352 for information.
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