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JULIANA:
Welcome to They Are Us, where you’ll hear stories of resilience, hope, and community from people in recovery and experts who support them. I’m your host, Juliana. In this episode, we’re focused on employment, a key part of rebuilding life and stability. First, we’ll talk to Carla Kostek, a program specialist with IRCO, the immigrant and refugee community organization who works closely with CCC’s Employment Access Center to provide targeted job training and career coaching for those in recovery. Then you’ll meet Louis Reyes, a CCC employee and former client who found his path to recovery and employment through CCC’s programs. Louis shares how mentors helped him navigate the challenges of addiction and mental health and how he’s helping others find their footing in the workforce.
Let’s get started.
Carla Kostek is a career and program specialist focusing on workforce development with IRCO, the Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization in collaboration with the Employment Access Center at Central City Concern. She focuses on career coaching and skill development. Welcome to the podcast, Carla.
CARLA KOSTEK:
Thank you, I’m excited to be here.
JULIANA:
All right. So let’s get started by telling me sort of about your career before you joined IRCO.
CARLA KOSTEK:
Sure, I was working in education. I was a licensed teacher and working mostly with high school students, some middle school students, and left the classroom a couple years ago, needed a career change, and was looking for a way to bridge those skills. What do I do if I’m not a teacher? That’s what I was trained to do. And I found my place with IRCO, with career development because I was working with high school students and working with them to develop post-secondary plans.
JULIANA:
Right, so what kind of skills were transferable for you?
CARLA KOSTEK:
I did a lot of case management because I was working in specialized services, support services for students on IEPs. So, I had case management skills, great communication skills, as well as conflict resolution and relationship building.
JULIANA:
Yeah, I’m always fascinated by just how many skills teachers have. You know, they really develop an incredible skill set that can be transferred to a lot of things, and you’re proof of that. Thanks. Yeah. All right. So, tell me about the collaboration between IRCO and Central City Concern.
CARLA KOSTEK:
So, IRCO and Central City Concern have a partnership as part of our workforce development. And that comes to the Employment Access Center in the form of the WorkSource Express Center. So, the WorkSource Express Center is part of the Portland WorkSource Center. So, it’s open to the public. It’s housed in the basement of the Employment Access Center on 2nd and Burnside. I’m working with a lot of customers who are already working with Central City Concern with the employment specialists there to be work ready and it’s really about picking up the next step with folks.
JULIANA:
So, are you working with Central City Concern clients and outside clients? So, somebody from that’s not part of Central City Concern could come and work with you?
CARLA KOSTEK:
That’s right, yeah. So, people who just need a WorkSource Center, you know maybe they need to come in and do some job search because that’s required for their unemployment. There are certain things that they have to do. Maybe they need to work on their resume. It’s all available there. There’s computer stations and…
JULIANA:
Yeah, that’s such a great resource. I don’t think I realized that the Employment Access Center was open for people that were not Central City Concerned clients. And that really illustrates this incredible community we have where we’ve got organizations working together to help people. And that’s really a pretty amazing thing.
CARLA KOSTEK:
Yeah, I think the really big part of that is being able to provide services on site, like making it accessible, making it easy for people to get services.
JULIANA:
Exactly. Okay, so tell me about your work. What is it that you do and how, you know, and be specific, you said something like working on resumes. What are you focused on for your job?
CARLA KOSTEK:
My main focus is getting folks into trainings and funding those trainings so that they can build more skills or improve on their current skills so that they can get the next level job for them or start, even if it’s starting somewhere like getting a flag or certification because they’ve been out of work for years and they need to find an entry level position.
It’s really about connecting people to the funding. Like, let’s get you into a training program, a short-term occupational situation where we can get you a job in three months. You have the skills and get you going.
JULIANA:
How important is it for people to have access to jobs?
CARLA KOSTEK:
Oh, it’s super important, I think! One, it gives you a sense of feeling productive and important, but it also connects you to your city and our community, like we need you. We need workers and we need people who are wanting to connect to the city and be part of Portland.
JULIANA:
Right, right. Okay, so how do you work with Central City Concern staff like Louis Reyes?
CARLA KOSTEK:
Yeah, I love working with the staff there. And one of the things that I love about that is getting to hear their stories. Everyone I work with there has some varied story that they’ve shared with me. And I take what I learned from them, and it helps me understand my clients better when I’m working with them at the WorkSource Express Center.
JULIANA:
All right, Carla, tell me about your interaction with Louis.
CARLA KOSTEK:
Oh yeah, I love Louis. He’s super fun and a really happy guy. And I met him when he was working at the front desk at Employment Access Center. I believe the position is an on-call positions, but they do a lot of the building work. And he was, I just got to know him because you get to know the front desk folks, you know? He came and he’s like, I think I want to get my certified recovery mentor certification. I was like, let’s do it. We can do that. Come on, come on down and talk to me like on your lunch hour. If you have a break, just come on down. And again, we’re right there. We’re in the same building. Come down and talk to me. We got him a scholarship application in. We paid for the certified recovery mentor program. And then he moved on to be working with the housing and employment specialist position at Central City Concern. And so I was able to, I saw him in a few different roles at Central City Concern.
JULIANA:
And we know how important it is for folks in that role as a mentor to have lived experience that really makes a difference for folks that they’re working with. Any last thoughts on Louis?
CARLA KOSTEK:
He’s a great real-life example of how people can start with Central City Concern and move up into different positions in the organization.
JULIANA:
How do you help CCC clients get the training they need for the jobs they want?
CARLA KOSTEK:
Well, a lot of times those customers are coming with their employment specialist directly to me and we’ll talk about, you know, what do you want to do next or what are you thinking of? What have you done before? What do you like? What do you not like about work? What we do is we look at what our training funds can pay for. And those are, connected to targeted occupations.
I work with a lot of people who are interested in going into getting their certified recovery mentor certification or their peer wellness specialist certification and that’s health care. Also, a targeted sector in behavioral health is huge and we have a high need for that. So we have people coming in to be mentors, to mentor people who then come back and want to get their mentorship certification.
JULIANA:
Yeah, so you’re helping them get certified for that.
CARLA KOSTEK:
Yeah, and that helps build their next steps and then they can apply for the next level job. Other people I’ve worked with have gone on to get their commercial driver’s license. I never thought I’d learn so much about trucks and trucking. Now when I’m on the highway, I’m like, there’s Schneider, there’s…
JULIANA:
That’s so awesome.
CARLA KOSTEK:
I know them!
JULIANA:
That’s amazing. That’s really, really, really cool. Okay. Why is employment so crucial for getting folks out of homelessness?
CARLA KOSTEK:
One, employment will provide stability. You have a paycheck. You can be self-sufficient. It gets you out of the shelter. It gets you out of, hopefully, out of poverty. But also, it gives you a sense of worth. I’ve got something to get up and go do and make friends, right? Hopefully, you’re working with people that you like being around, so there’s a companionship element to it.
JULIANA:
Yeah, it’s like building community, you know. I often remind people that the best way to have folks move through the system of subsidy is by making sure that they have income attainment. And that’s what employment’s all about. So, if we want to open the doors for other folks to come and get help, we need folks to get more stabilized. And employment’s huge part of that. So I just, I love the work you do.
So, tell me, Carla, what are you hopeful for?
CARLA KOSTEK:
I am hopeful for Portland to get vibrant again. I’d love to see people excited about being in Portland again, because sometimes it feels a little like we’re just making it through the sludge right now.
JULIANA:
Do you think we’re on the right track?
CARLA KOSTEK:
I think so. I really hope so. I want Portland to be big, bright and beautiful again.
JULIANA:
Yeah, me too. Me too. Is there anything else you want to share with me? Is there something else there? I mean, that obviously is very meaningful to you.
CARLA KOSTEK:
Yeah, um, you know, I’m hopeful that people will be good to each other. You know, we’re in a hard place and we see people having a really hard time on the street. Let’s remember every day that, oh my gosh, what if that was me? I would need to seek out help, and I would need someone to help me. So yeah, I’m hoping that by being able to provide the support I do to people, I’m hoping that gets turned over and used by someone else to help the next person.
JULIANA:
Yeah, that’s beautiful. Carla, thank you so much for being here today. I really, really loved what we talked about and just am so excited to have met you and learned more about employment.
CARLA KOSTEK:
It was my pleasure actually. I really love being able to share with you about what I do.
[MUSIC]
JULIANA:
Louis Reyes, born and raised in Portland, found support at Central City Concern’s Hooper Detoxification and Stabilization Center while battling alcohol addiction. Since then, Louis has graduated from CCC’s Recovery Mentor Program and now works as an employment housing specialist helping others in recovery on their journey to employment. Welcome to the podcast, Louis.
LOUIS REYES:
Thanks for having me. It’s great to be here.
JULIANA:
So, tell us about your journey to Central City Concern.
LOUIS REYES:
Sure thing. So, May 8th, 2023 was actually, I consider it the day I changed my life. That was the day I got to Hooper. It was like my last drink going in the doors. And I was scared and I honestly was very skeptical. Like I did not think it was gonna work. I was really stuck in that weird mindset to where I’m different. It’s not gonna happen. Like I’m not gonna be able to get sober, I’m gonna die this way because I can’t, all that other stuff that’s working for everyone else isn’t working for me.
But really I needed to surrender. That’s really it. And you hear about this stuff in AA and all this stuff and you won’t hear it unless you’re ready to hear it. So that’s kind of where my journey began. I spent nine days in Hooper. And I didn’t, I just refused to leave until I could figure something out. That’s why I stayed there so long, is because I didn’t really know what I wanted to do. A big thing for me was like, you know, I didn’t want to quit nicotine right away either. That was like a little too much. And so that wasn’t going to work for me and I was ready to give up and leave. I had a half gallon waiting for me at home, just ready to, you know, go back out there, do the same thing I’ve been doing.
JULIANA:
So, had you been to Hooper before or was this your first visit?
LOUIS REYES:
No, May 8th was my first time in Hooper. It took me three times. I went to Hooper three times.
JULIANA:
So, you went to Hooper three times and then what do you think was different about the third time that made you follow through?
LOUIS REYE:
I was super tired and I didn’t want to do all the stuff. The last time I went, I didn’t want to go do the program again, I didn’t want to do all that stuff again because that’s, I knew that’s what I would have to do if I stayed in that mindset. But the beautiful thing I learned in recovery was that I can just decide to try again. And like, so I did. I, and I was very honest with everyone when I, did do it, because I was just like, okay, whatever. And I just knew I needed my peers. And doing it alone never works.
JULIANA :
That’s so true. It’s really true. And going to a place like Hooper, you know, with peers around you made you not feel alone, right?
LOUIS REYES:
Yeah, which was huge for me and probably was the key to my recovery is all I just needed somebody that I knew understood what I was going through. Because all of the people in my life, like I could tell they didn’t want me to go through it, but they didn’t understand why I was going through it. And part of that is lack of me communicating it, I didn’t want to communicate it with it. A big part of my journey was figuring out like I was bipolar. I had no idea. I was just anxious and depressed, so guess what they did? Gave me bunch of anxiety and depression medication, which didn’t help. And there was one day I finally decided I’m not going to self-diagnose myself, I’m just going to tell the psychiatrist what’s going on. And I did. And gave that a couple days and I was talking to the psychiatrist for like a week.
JULIANA:
Was this after you were at Hooper?
LOUIS REYES:
No, this was right before I went the first time. So, like I guess a big part of my journey was figuring out what was going on up here, you know? And once I kind of knew a little bit of what’s going on up here, it made recovery seem possible. And then once I saw recovery was possible, I was like, man, maybe a real life, I can make a real life out of this, you know?
JULIANA:
That’s really wonderful. Thank you for sharing that especially the part about your depression and bipolar, you know, mental health kind of situations that are so common and people are not, you know, always really comfortable talking about so I commend you for being willing to talk with your psychiatrist because everybody goes “Oh well that seems pretty obvious,” but it’s not. You know, it’s scary to actually say those things.
The whole point of this podcast is sort of educating people about what’s real. And I, you know, having come from a family with a lot of mental health challenges, you know, it’s that stigma that people feel that somehow a mental situation is less than a physical one. And it’s just not true. I mean, it’s just not true. If you broke, if somebody had a broken arm, you would try to fix it.
So, you’re at Hooper. Take us through your next journey.
LOUIS REYES:
Yeah, so after Hooper, they, you know, put us in a van and I end up at The Estates, which is really cool. A lot better than I thought. A lot of people didn’t like, don’t like it.
JULIANA:
Yeah, so what is The Estates?
LOUIS REYES:
The Estates is a supportive housing building. That’s where they have the mentor program. Day one, getting there, right? They gave me my keys. That was a good feeling, right? I never had my own place. It was like a little Debbie, right? Like a little win. I showed up to my meetings every day. I just did the work and that’s all I had to do.
JULIANA:
Yeah, just focus and move forward, right?
LOUIS REYES:
Yeah, it seemed pretty easy once I got into housing and be around people that were like me. It was the best feeling in the world. I don’t really know how to describe it.
JULIANA:
Well, what you just said is such a fear for people who are living outside or with addiction. That what you just said was that you were scared, but you just persevered and it got easier. Is that accurate? Am I saying that right?
LOUIS REYES:
Yeah, and that’s the thing, I’ve noticed that in everyday life, you gotta think it’s gonna be okay no matter what. And I live by that. And it keeps me from spiraling out of control, you know?
JULIANA:
So you’re doing the mentor program. Tell us about how you ended up working for Central City Concern.
LOUIS REYES:
So actually, day one I saw my mentors and I realized I wanted to do what they wanted to do. I wanted to help other people because I remember feeling so alone not knowing information, right? Not knowing how to navigate what to do when you’re going through this. Part of the reason why I wanted to work for CCC was I saw my peers, you know, go through the on-call program that they have, which is a nice little, in my opinion, I needed a little more time to still work on my recovery and like ease my way back into the workforce, which was, on-call was a great way to do that, right? You can kind of make your own schedule, which was nice. And then I started working at different buildings, like kind of looking at jobs as I like, you know, first three months I can’t apply for anything anyway so I was kind of window shopping, figuring out what I want to do, got to know people, saw what they did, learned job titles and, you know, read job descriptions kind of on their website every day looking at job opportunities, figuring out what I wanted to do. I knew I wanted to do something in between, like help something in between the part where recovery, like getting out of the program, that transition from getting out of the program to getting in the workforce. Like I wanna be right there in that gap to help them because I’ve noticed a lot of my peers, I just feel like they don’t get the same help, know? And I wanna help alleviate that any way I can.
JULIANA:
So let’s talk about what we’re seeing in Portland right now. Do you feel like it’s getting better, it’s getting worse? What do you think? You’re somebody who sees and talks to people who are really early in their recovery journeys. Tell me what you’re hearing from them and what you’re seeing.
LOUIS REYES:
Well, right now I see that we’re, I think we’re doing pretty good as far as like getting people in. I think where we’re lacking is kind of mental health. You know, when you go out to the streets, right? I don’t know if you’ve seen the streets since 2022…
JULIANA:
I sure have. I’ve been working in Old Town since 2020. And so we all remember 2020 in Old Town.
LOUIS REYES:
I think it’s gotten better since 2022. Cause I remember coming around, around then and then 2023 and yeah, it was pretty bad when I first got here. Like I was seeing, you know, people smoke fentanyl right outside buildings and like just out in the open, like blowing plumes of smoke everywhere. It’s just, it wasn’t cool. I don’t see that as much. So, whatever we might be doing or whatever’s happening, I think as far as the drug, drug of fentanyl and stuff, think we’re doing okay. Hopefully.
But I just feel like what we see now, right, is I feel like there’s a lot of people with mental health that really need somewhere to go or like different type of help other than, you know, because there’s addiction and then mental health sometimes they… But what about the people that aren’t addicted to anything but they their mental health is just out of control?
JULIANA:
Yeah, it’s really true. I mean, you, in all parts of the city, especially in Old Town, I’ll see people that just are not mentally able to make decisions for themselves. And it’s heartbreaking. We don’t have any resources in or very little resources in Portland to help folks like that. And so, you know, that’s what you’re seeing outside too. What would you tell somebody that’s afraid to get into recovery?
LOUIS REYES:
I’d say try it out. If you don’t like it, try what you were doing before and when you’re sick of that, try this again. It’s always there.
JULIANA:
Why do you like doing the employment work? Why do you like helping people find jobs?
LOUIS REYES:
I just think, at least for me, I think it’s important because I needed something to do. I needed something to work towards, something to see, almost like climbing a ladder, right? I need to be able to look up and see that there’s something to get to, kind of thing. And that’s just how I am. Obviously everyone’s gonna be different, but, and I don’t know all the answers either.
JULIANA:
Okay. So, Louis, this has been really, really cool talking with you. Tell me what’s next. Tell me what your hopes are. What gets you excited about the future?
LOUIS REYES:
Oh man, I mean, since I got out of the program, I’ve been working a lot on computers and IT stuff. I’d really like to, you know, hopefully maybe find a position in IT at Central City eventually. And then who knows?
JULIANA:
Yeah, who knows? You know, you said something to me that really struck me ,was that you would want to go back to your community, Clackamas, and help educate people about what resources were out there.
LOUIS REYES:
Oh yeah, and that could be like me just going to their AA meetings and stuff. Yeah, like I just want people to know. And I’m glad I’ll be there for family and friends of the family that I think need it.
JULIANA:
Louis, thank you so much for coming today. I’m really honored to hear your story.
LOUIS REYES:
Thank you for having me. This is awesome.
[MUSIC]
JULIANA:
Thank you for listening to They Are Us. Employment is so central to recovery and housing stability, and it’s actually the focus of this year’s Compassion in Action luncheon, CCC’s largest annual fundraising event. If you want to learn more about CCC’s employment services or support our work, visit centralcityconcern.org. Email us at podcast@cccconcern.org with questions or suggestions for future topics. Until next time, I’m Juliana.
