With the holiday shopping season in full swing, Liz is excited to have a role in making sure people across the country get their gift purchases on time. Working at the FedEx Ship Center in Maple Grove, Liz is on the ‘front line’ of package distribution for the Twin Cities area.

“It’s a really busy time,” said Liz, who is 54 and works three hours a day, four days a week. She typically works with a partner scanning barcodes on packages and filling distribution bags. Liz said she enjoys working with people who come from a wide variety of world cultures. “We all get along great,” she added.

“I feel so much better when I am working. Getting out, going to work, and being with other people helps me feel more productive and builds my self-esteem.”

Since 2010, Liz has worked with various Rise team members to assist her in job development and follow-up employment support services as well as housing supports a few years ago.

“Over the years, I’ve had some great support from some really nice people at Rise,” Liz noted. “They know how to listen, give me good advice, and help me with paperwork.”

After being unemployed for about six years, Liz’s therapist suggested she contact Rise again for assistance in finding a job. Liz also started her own networking and a neighbor friend put her on to job opportunities at FedEx.LaNay Koralesky, a counselor with Minnesota Vocational Rehabilitation Services, assisted Liz develop her employment plan.

Rise Employment Consultant Ben Streitz, with Rise’s IPS (Individual Placement and Support) program, now meets with Liz twice a month to address any work-related issues she may have as well as helps her monitor her benefits so that Liz better understands the impact of her wages on them.

“I think it’s important to open up and tell your story,” said Liz. “We all need to help each other and can get some good ideas from other people.”

Liz enjoys going to Bridgeview Drop-In Center at the Lee Carlson Center for Mental Health and Well-Being in Fridley where she has made many friends. She enjoys playing board games and taking the variety of classes Bridgeview offers.

Liz has two grown sons of whom she is very proud and especially loves spending time with her two granddaughters who are two and six years old and live nearby.

She lives in a cozy apartment filled with photos of family, expressions of her faith, and her beloved cat, Stella. Liz enjoys scrapbooking and is (SSSHH!!) working on some for family Christmas gifts.

This article appears in the December 2019 issue of the Rise Reporter.