CELEBRATING DECADES OF COMMUNITY SERVICE
Rosa Richardson—Class of 1972
Referred to GPOIC by: Passaic County Workforce Development Center
Rosa C. Richardson was born Rosa M. Singletary to Corene Singletary and the late General Baker Singletary in Wilmington, North Carolina. Rosa Richardson is married to Michael Richardson and the mother of two wonderful children, Gregory and Lateefa, and two precious granddaughters, Brianna and Aniliyah.
Rosa Richardson was reared and educated in Winston Salem, North Carolina and moved to Paterson New Jersey in 1968. Rosa was one of the first Greater Paterson OIC graduates, in 1972. She went through two rigorous cycles at OIC. Upon completion of the second cycle, Rosa was able to gain valuable administrative skills and proper training to enter into the workforce. Being a student at OIC inspired Rosa to become one of its Board Members. As an OIC Board Member Mrs. Richardson has been an advocate for women in the work place through training and education. Serving as a member for the past thirty-five years has been a rewarding experience for her.
Mrs. Richardson has served on several other boards and committees. Including YWCA, Girl Scouts and was a member of the Board of Trustees at Community Baptist Church of Love where she also served as a choir member for over twenty-five years. Rosa was also the President of the United Voices Gospel Choir for thirteen years.
Lorraine Hodges—Class of 1980
Referred to GPOIC by: Passaic County Workforce Development Center
One morning in 1980, I was very frustrated. I was unemployed with two small children and was walking down Broadway in Paterson. I saw Mr. Robert Rahman, a Board Member of the OIC program. Mr. Rahman informed me that the OIC program was upstairs from where we were talking and he encouraged me to go and sign up for training. I signed up and my life changed completely. At that time I took the necessary courses to become a Secretary, with the help of Ms. Weinberg, Ms. Marmo and my friend, Ms. Lynda Smith (a Job Developer at that time). After training in the OIC program, I was hired as Mr. Nutter’s Secretary. I then started to learn how to use the word processor and then became a Word Processing Instructor.
I worked for the OIC program for fifteen (15) years when Dr. Mary E. Garner, the Executive Director for the Paterson Community Health Center, hired me as an Administrative Assistant. The clinic was downsized and I went on to Berkley College in a training program from the unemployment office. As my skills were updated, I was hired as a Medical Record Assistant with the Passaic General Hospital. After seven (7) years there I encountered another downsizing and was then hired by the City of Paterson in the Section 8 Department where I am currently. No matter where I go I feel in my heart that Greater Paterson OIC will always be my “Home Sweet Home”.
Gladys Bayon—Class of 1984
Referred to GPOIC by: Passaic County Board of Social Services
My name is Gladys Bayon and I was born in Arecibo, Puerto Rico. I came from a family of 9 children. I have one daughter and 2 grandchildren. I graduated from John F. Kennedy High School. I went from being a high school graduate to becoming a mother and wife. I stayed home until my daughter was old enough to go to school. As soon as my daughter was old enough to go to school, I decided I wanted to be independent and work. I wanted my daughter to have someone to look up to and to have the goal of a career and not just being a homemaker.
Through a friend and Passaic County Board of Social Services, I registered in the Greater Paterson OIC program in 1984. I can honestly say that when I started OIC I did not know how to type or use a computer. One thing I did know was that I wanted to learn and this is where I got the opportunity to do so. Some of the course I took was bookkeeping, typing grammar. Two other courses taught at this school was self-confidence and preparation to go on job interviews. The skills I learned at OIC have helped me a lot in my career.
I started to work for the Greater Paterson Chamber of Commerce in December 1984 until present. I had to go through three interviews, one with the President, one with the Associate Director, and one with the Supervisor/Office Manager at that time.
So I was really grateful that OIC had prepared me for these interviews. I am currently the Office Administrator for the Chamber. I am responsible for the day-to-day responsibilities of running an office. I started as a receptionist and through the years, I was offered other responsibilities such as bookkeeper, accounts payable/receivable, payroll, training of interns for on the job training from various organizations/schools, the interviewing of future employees as my assistants and the general clerical work pertaining to the office.
Also because of the training I got at OIC, I have had the opportunity to do freelance work, after hours, at various companies/organizations, which include Dr. Paul Fulford, Psychologist, Paterson Valley Chiropractic, Wayne Absolute Care/Medhab Billing, Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Paterson Education Fund, Harry Katz, Esq.
From my perspective, Greater Paterson OIC changed my life. They gave me the opportunity to see that you can be independent and feel good about yourself and also be a role model for others. If you are looking to get started in a career. I can honestly say, the OIC program is a way to get your foot in the door. What you do once you’re in is up to the individual person.
Thank you Greater Paterson OIC for all you have given me.
Amen Al-Azar El—Class of 1987
Referred to GPOIC by: Passaic County Board of Social Services
Love is the operative word when I reflect upon OIC and, in specific, its executive staff I recently had a chance encounter with Executive Director, Mr. Harvey Nutter at a local restaurant in close proximity to our respective professions. After exchanging courtesies, he informed me that his colleague and Director of Operations, Ms. Lynda Smith, had recently experienced some medical complexities but was almost fully recuperated. I think of what a strong intelligent woman she is. I attribute my personal success and motivation to the single-handed encouragement and persistent prompting of these two above cited remarkable individuals.
My first contact with OIC was during a particularly challenging period of my life. I had recently relocated to Paterson from the Carolinas and was experiencing quite a few problems adjusting. At the time of my enrollment, I was the only male in attendance and challenged greatly by the manual dexterity required for competence in typing. Compared to my pitiable keystrokes, my classmates sounded like an incessant barrage of rapid machine gun fire. I was intimidated besieged with doubts and considered myself in the grips of an intractable dilemma. I seriously considered failure as an option! Ms. Smith, however, was unrelenting, “just try to get it up to 40 wpm—keep trying!” I recall vividly Ms. Smith’s mandate to me, “You are not allowed to fail,—we simply won’t let you!” Therefore, I persisted until I prevailed. Not only did they motivate me to succeed, both Mr. Nutter and Ms. Smith literally drove me to numerous prospective employers to assure that I received the full benefits of my training! What dedication! These selfless and magnanimous acts restored my faith in humanity.
I graduated OIC in June of 1987 adept in the basics of clerical procedure. I have since graduated cum laude from William Paterson University with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology and am currently employed as a State Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor with Damon House Inc. of Paterson, NJ. I am also currently enrolled at Thomas Edison State College where I am pursuing a Master’s Degree in Management Science. I am where I am because of OIC and because Love would not allow me to fail.
With Love and Gratitude