Youth Stories

Ryan

“It’s one of the best things that’s ever happened to me.”

Ryan, 24, was serving 10 months in prison. In his search for a job while on work release, “I probably went to 200 places and put in my resume—every fast-food place from Des Moines to Shoreline,” he says.

But when he discovered SoDo Inc., he found something he never expected. Through this partnership between YouthSource (King County) and South Seattle Community College, students spent three weeks on campus exploring the industrial trades, followed by three weeks in an internship with a private company.

Ryan’s internship was at Washington Chain, a maritime supply company in SoDo. The company didn’t intend to hire a new employee, but having seen Ryan’s work ethic and willingness to learn, they offered him a permanent job—a union job with a future.

With two young children and another on the way, Ryan says, “I need this—I need to work and have a career path. I had already given myself a kick in the butt—I was just waiting for a door to open.”