PURPOSE
Fresh Start is a job search assistance ministry. The program is designed to aid job seekers by identifying client skills and interests, assisting with resume and interview advice and alerting them to appropriate job listings and career training opportunities.
RESOURCES
Program Details
Job seekers meet with Fresh Start counselors who assess their education, skill set and personal interests to determine what types of positions would best suit each individual. They offer assistance with creating or improving resumes, honing interviewing skills and presenting a professional appearance. Counselors then guide clients through more than 150 current job leads and assist them in selecting appropriate listings and applying for those positions. Each week several hundred job postings are sent to all clients with email capability.
The staff of Fresh Start has extensive local and regional contacts within the business and educational community. They have relationships with job training agencies that offer free or low cost training to clients and with businesses who recruit through the Fresh Start program. they also offer seminars that are designed to give job seekers tools to more effectively market themselves and their skills.
Fresh Start also maintains a comprehensive job search website which contains articles pertaining to employment search topics, links to job search websites, local resources, assessment tools and advice for job seekers with troubled backgrounds.
Facilities
Fresh Start maintains an office in the CCC administration building (115 North 13th Street, Leesburg). The office has two computers available for clients to use for resume development. The office is staffed by job counselors Monday - Thursday from 8:30 am to 11:30 am.
History
Fresh Start Ministry began in 2008 when the National and Central Florida economies had taken a major downturn and unemployment reached historical heights. The ministry leaders rolled up their sleeves and got to work helping those in our area who had suffered layoffs and job terminations due to difficult economic conditions. Fresh Start currently has 100 active clients.
Volunteer Opportunities
-
Counsel with those searching for a job
-
Assist with resume building
-
Contact local businesses for job leads
-
Regularly contact clients with job opportunities matching their individual skill sets
-
Partner financially to help a client develop a resume, give job skill training or provide a seminar to equip job seekers via donations to the Christian Care Center
Staff
The Fresh Start staff consists of six volunteer positions:
-
Director: oversees all operations of Fresh start, its programs and facilities
-
Counselors: assist clients with all program services
Ken bragg
Director | Fresh Start Job Program
Ken was founding director and chief administrative officer for the Lake County Vocational Technical Center and the Kenneth A. Bragg Public Safety Complex which established training programs in over forty occupational areas. He has provided four decades of service to Lake County's education and business community and has had significant impact on state and national education and economic development programs. Ken and Sure, his wife of 56 years, have two daughters. They each hold Master's degrees from Western Kentucky University.