His experience at United Ministries encouraged him to pursue higher education in electronics. He credits his success to the staff members' rare ability to motivate and their genuine concern for GED students. The unique atmosphere that feels like family didn't hurt either. He said that made it easier to open up about things he didn't understand.

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Veronica's motto:
"Take time to manage your money,
or your money will manage you."

Veronica Parks came to United Ministries via Hands on Greenville, a volunteer resource agency, because she felt it was her duty to share what she knows about finances to help others.  Veronica is the owner of Prosperity Consulting, a business whose objective is to empower individuals, entrepreneurs, businesses, churches, etc., with knowledge and tools to help them achieve and/or exceed their financial goals and dreams.

Veronica’s business was formed out of concern for those who do not have the expertise to manage their finances efficiently.  On Wednesday mornings, before a lobby full of people awaiting financial assistance on their rent or utility bill, Veronica gives no-nonsense advice on budgeting one’s money when in survival mode – packing lunches, dropping cable service, styling your own hair, and using the library, to name a few.  She says it is her sincere desire and hope to see others manage their finances and prosper, instead of living in financial bondage. 

Veronica even meets with people at no charge, if they want one-on-one help sorting their finances. ________________________________________

Bob Dillon (r) tutors a GED student

Bob joined the Employment Readiness team last fall as a workshop volunteer. He runs the intake workshop for new program participants every Tuesday, which frees up more time for the Employment Readiness counselors to spend one-on-one with participants. As a former small business owner, Bob's experience and skills help him provide new participants with quality advice concerning how to best fill out job applications and answer interview questions. However, not everything Bob does for Employment Readiness is "old hat" for him. He now has experience with drug testing potential participants and dealing with the various reactions and stories that often come along with that job, which definitely was not a part of his past business ventures!

After a few months, Bob decided to expand his volunteering to the top floor of the Learning Center. Now, following workshop every Tuesday, Bob spends several more hours tutoring in the GED Program. Different from the group volunteer experience in Employment Readiness, tutoring involves more one-on-one time. Bob circulates among a room of students, building rapport and relationships, which enable him to prepare students for the GED Exam. His efforts also allow staff to spend time working with students on the issues they may have outside of the classroom, which is critical to the program's success.