LIMESTONE, Maine — Former student Kyle Glass recently returned to the Loring Job Corps Center to thank the staff who assisted him in achieving success. During his visit, he also spoke with students and offered some words of encouragement as they continue their training to gain employment in today’s workforce.
“When you look at the overall mission of Job Corps, Kyle is truly a success story in that he came to Job Corps and overcame many hurdles in order to achieve success,” said Roger Felix, business and community liaison at the center. “Kyle has come a long way from being that student who at times wanted to just give up to now having a viable career and the opportunity to grow even further.”
“Growing up in a rural area of central Maine, many of the youth in small towns find themselves working in a part-time job that has little to no chance of advancement,” Glass said. “I wanted more, but after high school I got stuck in a rut of thinking I was not good enough for anything because I had no real skills.”
He decided to look at Job Corps and see if it could assist him in getting a better job, as well as help him increase his ability to gain employability skills while expanding his own self-esteem.
Glass came to Loring in July of 2016. While there, he found himself with others who had the same goals, and they discovered they could help each other in their quest for a better life.
In 18 months Glass completed the Home Builders institute carpentry program and the commercial driver’s license truck driving program. After graduation this past spring, the Werner trucking company immediately hired him to become a long-haul driver with his own assigned truck.
Glass attributed his success to the staff at Loring who encouraged him to keep moving forward towards his goal and never allowed him to give up.
“Words cannot describe how fortunate I feel every day to say I am a Loring graduate,” he said.
“Even when I was down and wanted to give up, you never gave up on me,” Glass told his former instructor Mike Espling, “and every day I am going to be thankful to know that you made a difference in my life.”
Espling replied, “You had it in you all along, all I did was ensure you achieved your true potential.”
While at the center, Glass visited with current students and shared how Job Corps changed his life, from his first day when he thought he would not succeed to where he is today, which he said sometimes feels like a dream.
According to Felix, who also serves as sergeant major of the Loring Honor Guard, Glass was also an active member of the military prep program and provided countless hours of community service throughout Maine, which gave him the ability to learn leadership and even more confidence in his abilities.
Glass personally thanked Felix and Chief Carl Smith for their commitment to every student and showing him what it takes to be a good leader, both on and off center. He said he would continue to pay it forward by sharing his experience with Job Corps.
