ABBTECH Participates in Hurricane Katrina Job Fair at DC Armory Friday, September 30, 2005

Capital Area Staffing Association

Third Quarter E-Newsletter

September 2005

Hurricane Katrina Job Fair at the DC Armory

By Robin Mee

The Capital Area Staffing Association participated in two job fairs at the DC Armory on September 13 and 14 for Hurricane Katrina survivors being housed there. The first was a CASA resume writing workshop and job fair, organized by John Capozzi, CASA legislative chairman, and the DC Department of Employment Services. Threase Baker of ABBTECH Staffing Services, Inc., Dolly Guerra of CityStaff, and Arnold Cherry of Hudson, arranged for laptops and printers to be available and created hard copy resumes and career profiles on the spot. These resumes are listed on the CASA Web site for all to access. Many staffing firms had immediate jobs for the participants, and the local media joined us to witness the first of many steps being taken to return to normalcy.

The second day brought to the DC Armory a job fair open to both staffing companies and other area employers. According to the Washington Post, 70 people were interviewed and 20 got jobs on the spot. In addition to many of the firms listed below, Manpower and Volt Services joined us on September 14 for the general job fair.

Several days later, we received this letter from one of the evacuees:

“My name is Lawrence Simmons. I am a Hurricane Katrina evacuee from Orleans Parish. I recently attended a job fair at the Stadium Armory, where I met a wonderful lady named Ellen de Bremond of Diversity Services, a staffing firm in Washington, DC. She promised to introduce me to a friend of hers who managed a mortgage company, so I could get back into my career as a mortgage specialist. Well, to make a long story short, she kept her word, and I began work on Monday, September 18. I work for SBM Mortgage Corp. in Bethesda, MD. My company is so great. The president/CEO, Mr. Eric Westbury, took me to the Men’s Wearhouse, where he brought me suits, shirts, slacks, belts, socks, a sports coat, and shoes. I am so grateful to Ms. De Bremond and my company for this wonderful opportunity.”

Lawrence Simmons

Mortgage Specialist

SBM Mortgage Corp.

On behalf of the CASA membership and board of directors, we would like to wish Lawrence the

very best of luck in his return to a career as a mortgage specialist.

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