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At Hope Gain, our mission is rooted in creating meaningful change and empowering individuals living with mental health challenges. As we continue our journey, we are thrilled to share the latest initiatives and programs we are actively working on to uplift our community and beyond.

1. Hope from Home Mentorship Program

Our flagship program, the Hope from Home Mentorship Program, is making waves across the nation. This 1-on-1 mentorship initiative is designed to support individuals with mental health conditions in finding and maintaining fulfilling, long-lasting careers. The program is structured over a year, with mentors and mentees meeting twice a month. Our dedicated mentors help mentees craft resumes, prepare for interviews, and apply for remote jobs. While the program does not offer mental health counseling, it provides invaluable guidance and support, ensuring that participants have the tools they need to achieve career stability and success.

2. EmpowerMinds Community Center

Though not yet officially open, our EmpowerMinds Community Center is already becoming a beacon of hope in the community. This volunteer-run center will feature 12 computer units available for individuals to use as they work toward gaining employment. The center will also host employment readiness workshops and training sessions, equipping people with the skills they need to succeed in today’s competitive job market. The EmpowerMinds Workforce Development Initiative, one of our cornerstone programs at the center, is tailored specifically to individuals living with mental illness, providing them with personalized career counseling, mental health support, and access to remote work resources.

3. Fundraising and Grant Initiatives

To sustain and expand our impact, we are actively involved in several fundraising and grant initiatives. Most notably, we are planning the EmpowerMinds Financial Success Summit, a fundraiser scheduled for February 2026. This event will bring together thought leaders and professionals to discuss mental health, financial empowerment, and unconventional ways to achieve success. Additionally, we are applying for various grants, including the Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program, to further support our work. Our goal is to secure $500,000 to bolster our digital equity efforts, ensuring that everyone has access to the tools and opportunities they need to thrive in the digital age.

4. Expanding Our Reach and Impact

Hope Gain is committed to continuous growth and reaching more people in need. We have recently received a federal grant from the State of Michigan, which enabled us to open a workforce development center. Through this center, we have already helped employ over 300 individuals, and we are on track to assist even more as we expand our programs. Our work does not stop here; we are constantly exploring new avenues to support our community, including potential new roles like a hospitality position at the EmpowerMinds Community Center, aimed at providing a welcoming environment for all who enter.

5. Looking to the Future

As we look to the future, our focus remains on breaking down barriers and creating opportunities for those living with mental health challenges. We believe in the power of community, mentorship, and support, and we are dedicated to ensuring that everyone has the chance to succeed, regardless of their circumstances. Through our ongoing efforts, Hope Gain continues to be a pillar of strength and hope for individuals across the nation.

Thank you for being part of our journey. Together, we can create a brighter, more inclusive future for all.

Over a transformative six-week period, the Hope Gain Center of West Michigan had the honor of employing ten bright and enthusiastic youths remotely through the GROW1000 program, a pioneering initiative spearheaded by the city of Grand Rapids to foster youth employment.

The Hope from Home program matches individuals with a mentor who provides guidance and support in a range of areas, including resume planning, job searching, and interview preparation. Mentors also provide a listening ear and help individuals overcome any barriers they may face in the job search process.

The program has been recognized for its innovative approach to addressing the unique challenges faced by individuals with mental illness in finding employment. The grant from the Heart of West Michigan United Way will enable the Hope Gain Center to expand the program and provide more individuals with access to this valuable service.

“We are thrilled to receive this grant and to be able to expand our Hope from Home program,” said Sheri Munsell, Executive Director of the Hope Gain Center of West Michigan. “This program provides vital support to individuals with mental illness who often face significant barriers in the job search process. With this funding, we will be able to match more individuals with mentors and help them build fulfilling careers.”

The recognition from the Heart of West Michigan United Way highlights the importance of providing support to individuals with mental illness in the job search process. The Hope from Home program is an innovative solution to this problem, providing individuals with the personalized support they need to succeed in the workforce.

Find out more by visiting the Heart of West Michigan United Way Website[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

We are thrilled to announce that the Hope Gain Center of West Michigan has been named the Grow with Google Partner of the Month for April. This recognition comes as a result of the organization’s efforts to support individuals with mental health challenges in finding remote work through their various programs.

At the Hope Gain Center, our mission is to help individuals overcome barriers to employment and build fulfilling careers. We have partnered with Google to provide our clients with access to valuable training and education resources, such as the Google Career Certificates program.
This program offers a range of courses in areas like IT support, data analytics, and UX design that can be earned entirely online. We recognized the value of these certificates and worked tirelessly to ensure that our clients could take advantage of this opportunity. We provided support to help them navigate the online learning platform, connect with mentors, and access resources to help them succeed in their coursework.

The impact of our efforts has been recognized by the Grow with Google team, who named us as their Partner of the Month for April. Partner Engagement Manager Julia Korunets praised our work, saying, the founder of The Hope Gain Center of West Michigan supports her community with the Google Career Certificate Scholarships and other Grow with Google resources. Thank you for empowering your community with digital skills — keep up the amazing work!

This recognition highlights the importance of organizations like ours in providing support to individuals who face challenges in accessing traditional employment and training opportunities. By partnering with organizations like Google, we are able to provide our clients with valuable resources that can help them build successful careers.

We are incredibly proud of this recognition and will continue our efforts to support individuals with mental health challenges in finding remote work and building fulfilling careers. Congratulations to the Hope Gain Center of West Michigan for this well-deserved recognition!
Read full article here

Today we are joined by Rhonda Parker

Rhonda has a master’s degree in special education and working towards her doctorate currently in organizational leadership and special education. Rhonda has really focused her whole life on helping and teaching others. She has started the Parker Autism Center and Baking to Impact LLC which is dedicated to hiring and training people with disabilities for jobs and helping their family members. Today’s presentation is focused on writing a successful resume. 

The first thing to do when writing your resume is to sit down and think about your skill sets. Go through each job you have had and think about what skills you’ve learned through each job that you have had. If you have a gap in your resume explain why you’ve been out of the workforce, whether because of taking care of a child or a sick parent, there are skills you learned during that break. Employers are looking at hundreds or thousands of resumes, so what they’re looking for is if you are dependable, have leadership skills, have the ability to adapt, are flexible, and have emotional intelligence where can handle things when under pressure. Important to ask yourself are you looking for a job or career? When looking for a career your mindset will start to change. Important to remember it’s not about what you don’t know it’s about your potential, so join LinkedIn, find a mentor, do some volunteering work. Also, look into college options or training courses. Currently, in Michigan, there’s a new offer where those over the age of twenty-five can go to college for free.

Also please remember that one resume does not fit every job. Need to rework your resume to fit the job description that you’re applying to and really put in keywords that are in the job description. Additionally, do a cover letter. A cover letter is a hello this is me and this is why I’m different from everyone else and why I’m the best fit for the position. The other thing you really need to do is research the companies you are applying to and do some practice interviews with family and friends. It can also be especially helpful to ask friends and family what your skills are as a lot of the time we have such a negative view of ourselves that we miss a lot of the skills we have. 

Rhonda Parker Contact Sites:

• Parker Autism Center 

We are joined by Jonathon Javier, CEO of Wonsulting whose mission is to help “Individuals from non-traditional backgrounds land their dream jobs” (“Where Underdogs turn into Winners”, n.d.) shares with us the key to utilizing LinkedIn to get dream jobs. In this video, he goes over several key things to know. The first thing that he focuses on is the idea of using LinkedIn to find jobs.

90% of people are passive on LinkedIn, however, the goal is to be as active as possible by posting content, messaging people, and commenting on content. There are four tiers to be in when applying to a job: 

1. Tier four: Applying with maybe a thousand others 
2. Tier Three: Applying with maybe twenty who get it referred for job
3. Tier Two: Applying with maybe 10 who got referred by people on the company team 
4. Tier one: Applying with maybe one or two who got referred by the hiring manager 

Generally, you get hired if you’re in tier one or two. So what do you do with this information? What you do is you search for a job,  look at alumni in this type of job, and look at their hired posts. The people they tag are generally the hiring managers or the people who helped them get the job. From there you send these tagged people invites with a personalized message. Send a follow-up message and try to get on the phone with them. At the end of the phone call say,  “thanks so much for taking the time to talk to me I was interested in this job at x(company) I am interested in how do I get an interview?”.  They’ll either be able to refer you for an interview or they can send you in the direction of someone who can. 

The second thing to do is to develop your digital footprint. What Jonathan means with this is you should always keep your LinkedIn up-to-date. Additionally, your LinkedIn should have a short concise summary about what your roles and passions are in life. Lastly, you should have your current company and previous roles that you’ve been in. 

So now finally, here’s Jonathan‘s challenge to you: create a LinkedIn post responding to the question: what’s your story? Tag Jonathan and his company and then look at who viewed your post and add everyone who you want to potentially get a job from. 

As a final reminder, these are the current  Facebook groups for you to join: 

1. Legit From Home  Advanced Group: A group for individuals looking for 30K+ jobs  
2. Legit From Home Community Group: A group for individuals who want more of a community feel and people who will support them in their search for a job
3. Legit Work from Home public group: Has job links only
4. Legit from Home Discussion Group: A group for work from home questions and job links

Jonathon Javier Sources 

Wonsulting Company Main Website: https://wonsulting.com/. 

Press Release: HOPE GAIN NETWORK RECEIVES GRANT FROM THE POLLINATION PROJECT

The seed grant will fund training programs for people in need seeking work from home opportunities

-The grant will fund the first of many web based training programs planned by Hope Gain
-Hope Gain Network endeavors to connect people struggling with mental illness with work from home opportunities
-Programming joins practical job training skills with a focus on mental health wellness

September 9, 2020 – Grand Rapids, MI
Hope Gain Network is excited to announce it has secured grant funding from the Pollination Project. This seed grant will allow Hope Gain to implement its first comprehensive webinar series “We Remote: Introduction to Working from Home”.

“The program will be web-based training,” Sheri Munsell, CEO and founder of Hope Gain Network, said of accepting the grant. “The focus will be helping those struggling with mental illness learn how to find a legitimate

The new webinar will fulfill Hope Gain Network’s mission: to help those struggling with depression, anxiety, and other mental health concerns find legitimate remote career opportunities.

Recent studies by Owl Labs and CNBC|SurveyMonkey Workforce Survey have shown that people who work from home tend to be happier, have better work life balance, and stay working with companies longer than people who only work on-site.

With the COVID-19 pandemic and jobless claims at a historical high, more people than ever are struggling with their mental health, the mission of Hope Gain Network has become more relevant than ever. The Introduction to Working from Home training will be an important first step for many seeking solutions to the problems many are struggling with today.

“Our goal is to eliminate the stigma of mental illness in the workplace,” Munsell said “We created Hope Gain Network to bring together employers that care and the people who need them. We are excited to be able to bring this opportunity for work from home job training to so many people that need it.”

For more information, please visit Hope Gain’s website HopeGain.org.