Every morning, Can Dee reports to work at 6:00 a.m. with the Chrysalis Roads program. She shares, “I put on my uniform with pride.” She takes satisfaction in a job well done as she and her fellow crew members travel to locations like Westminster, Laguna Beach, and Huntington Beach to provide freeway maintenance in partnership with Caltrans. “It’s amazing,” says Can Dee. “When you start off, you see this mess. But when we get done, we’re just like, look what we did!”
Every day, Can Dee puts on her uniform with pride.
For Can Dee, her hard work is a reflection of her gratitude to Chrysalis. “I’m just trying to be good to my company,” she says. “I’m not here to just receive from Chrysalis. I’m here to give like they gave to me.”
She was first referred to Chrysalis upon reentry after 10 months in jail, where she’d been fighting a self-defense case. “Someone was trying to kill my son, and I just blacked out,” she says. “It’s kind of hard to talk about.” Eventually Can Dee was released on bail and with a promise to the judge that she would work and go to school.
After nearly a year of incarceration, Can Dee discovered that her landlord had given her apartment to someone else. “I lost everything,” she says. She was afraid, but she remembered that when she first moved to California from her hometown of Memphis several years back, she’d made a promise to herself: “I knew I came to bless somebody in any way I possibly can.”
After navigating the justice system and losing housing, Can Dee was connected to job search training, basic needs support, and a transitional job with Chrysalis.
Through a reentry program for formerly incarcerated women, Can Dee was connected with Chrysalis in Orange County. In addition to completing our employment program and being connected to a transitional job within our social enterprise business, her Employment Specialist provided gift cards to buy groceries and professional attire for interviews. “I didn’t have anything,” she remembers. “I had a white T-shirt and a pair of jeans and no shoes.”
Can Dee also joined the SECTOR program and started working with Project Roomkey and the Downtown Women’s Center. She found both jobs very fulfilling. Working with people experiencing homelessness and/or vulnerable populations, including individuals who have experienced abuse or assault, is her dream. “That is something I’m very passionate about and want to do for the rest of my life.” She has also enrolled in college courses in the fields of social work and business administration.
While working, Can Dee has been pursuing degrees in social work and business administration.
Further, at Chrysalis and through the SECTOR program, she has gained skills to explore future job opportunities. “Whatever you need, Chrysalis will help you to the best of their ability,” she says. She reflects on receiving resume-writing and practice interview support as well as assistance obtaining her Driver License and registering for school. “And they sit down and talk with you if you don’t understand,” she says. “They care about you. They’re not faking it.”
Looking back on how far she’s come, Can Dee says, “Chrysalis has taught me how to remain humble. I am human; I make mistakes, but even though I’ve done the things I’ve done, I had to learn to forgive myself.” She says now she knows, “I’m not a loser. I’m brave, and I can do all the things I set my mind to.”
“Whatever you need, Chrysalis will help you to the best of their ability,”
Can Dee is among 7,000 Chrysalis clients who turn to our organization for support each year. Please join us in our efforts to build a stronger workforce by making an impactful end-of-year gift today – every dollar helps us change lives!