This January, the Barzilai Foundation has launched a new initiative that will give employment opportunities to individuals struggling to obtain financial stability, the Barzilai Apprenticeship Program. The program will create jobs at community charities, which will be filled with individuals who have received support from the charities and are looking to move beyond the need for continued support.
The program is designed with two challenges in mind; firstly, once an individual reaches a point of requiring charitable or government support, the pathway back to independence is difficult and secondly, charitable organizations are chronically underfunded and understaffed limiting their ability to positively impact their communities.
In collaboration with our charity partners, the Barzilai Foundation will identify high potential individuals who have encountered a major obstacle that impairs their financial stability. The program provides up to two years of employment and in addition to a stable income, is designed to provide participants with development in areas such as financial literacy, professional upskilling, and career coaching.
For our partner organizations, the program gives them the ability to fill needed roles that will allow them to fulfill their mission and expand their impact in the community.
Major life disruptions such as disease, death of a partner, or career displacement can move individuals who have a long history of independence and stability into a cycle of poverty and financial dependence. This creates a life-altering reality for them and their children. The cycle of financial dependence is difficult to break and children in families that receive benefits are significantly more likely to require financial support or government benefits as adults.
“Our Apprenticeship Program is built to help people who want to work to regain their independence and who may find opportunities to that extremely difficult to come by. We will give them a path to be self-sufficient and to provide for themselves and their families. The program will also give participants a way to build their self-worth through helping others who are facing similar challenges. And perhaps most importantly, for families participating in the program, this will decrease the chances of their children needing government benefits support in adulthood,” commented Brandon Sosa, CEO Barzilai Foundation
The Barzilai Foundation has already identified initial partners and is working through the first set of apprenticeship roles. Stay tuned for program updates on our partnerships and participants as we celebrate individuals leveraging opportunity to change their lives.
DJ recently found himself put out on the street, along with his younger brother, and unexpectedly forced to support himself, without a job or housing. The apprenticeship program helped in providing both.
As part of the Barzilai Apprenticeship Program, a father of three supports the community through his new role as a handyman for the EV Foundation after his business is hurt by COVID pandemic.