Today we’d like to introduce you to David Summerfield.
Thanks for sharing your story with us David. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
My Goodwill story began about three years ago when I started as a part-time Wares Processor. That meant I was processing the donations given to us by the community by pricing them and getting them ready to go out on the sales floor.
Shortly after that, I began working full-time and eventually was promoted to a Production Supervisor leading the entire production team. A few months later, I became the Assistant Manager of my store, and now I’m the Sales Manager of the Goodwill store on Illiff Avenue in Aurora. I started at the bottom and worked my way up in the span of about two years.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has not been the smoothest road, but everything I’ve been through has gotten me to where I am today. My life was much darker before I started working at Goodwill. When I was 19 years old, my brother was killed in a workplace accident. My brother was the glue that held my family together. His death affected me big time. I started drinking every single day.
Just a few years later, my sister passed away from a brain aneurysm. My family suffered two tragedies within just a few years of one another, and it was really hard on all of us. When my sister passed away, my drinking got out of control. My sister, Lisa, was the oldest, and I was the baby, so she had taken care of me. It’s really hard for me to talk about Lisa even now.
It was around this time that I reached the darkest point in my life. I turned to alcohol to cope. I just kept thinking about all the loss and all the pain, and I did attempt to take my own life. I spent several days in the hospital in recovery. When I was released, I didn’t stop drinking. Eventually, I was incarcerated for a DWAI. It wasn’t until I got out of jail that I realized I wanted to be better, and I wanted to make positive changes in my life.
When I got out of jail, I didn’t have a permanent address. I was floating around couch surfing between friends and family members who were generous to host me. This made finding a job difficult, but Goodwill was there to help when I needed it. I started as a Wares Processor at a Goodwill store in my neighborhood. That’s when I learned that Goodwill had an Employee Support Services program specifically to help staff members get back on their feet.
I applied for the program, and Goodwill’s Employee Assistance Fund helped me pay the majority of the security deposit for my own apartment. Now, thanks to Goodwill, I’m living independently, I can afford to pay my rent, my car payments and all the necessities of life.
Goodwill Industries of Denver – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
As a Sales Manager at Goodwill, it’s my responsibility to drive the sales and production at my store. But it’s so much more than that.
The whole reason Goodwill stores exist is to help Coloradans in need to find self-sufficiency and independence through what we call the “Power of Work.” Everything we do—and everything I do for my location—goes right back into helping the community.
Goodwill’s mission programs provide employment opportunities and career development training options for individuals with disabilities, disadvantaged students and struggling adults. That’s always been what I’m most proud of as a Goodwill employee.
Even when I was a Wares Processor, that was my number one reason for working at Goodwill. When I learned where the money goes and had the opportunity to meet and work alongside some of the individuals in our Community Employment program, I knew I wanted to stay with Goodwill and contribute to the mission as much as I could.
Goodwill has changed my life in so many ways. I’m just very thankful and happy to be working for Goodwill.
How do you, personally, define success? What’s your criteria, the markers you’re looking out for, etc?
For me, success is not only doing my job right and doing my job well but also continuing to push myself to do better. It’s about reaching goals and setting new goals once you reach the old ones. I think that’s something I’ve done well in the years I’ve been at Goodwill. I kept challenging myself to apply for positions that I may not have even considered in the past. My next goal is to become an Area Manager for Goodwill, and I’m lucky to have supportive mentors within the organization who are helping me get to where I need to be.
When I think about success, I also think about bringing individuals up with me. In the role that I’m in now, I make it a priority to make sure my staff knows what opportunities are available to them through Goodwill. One of my proudest moments happened just recently. I went to the gas station near my store, and the clerk said to me, “Oh, you’re David? Your employees say nothing but good things about you!” Knowing that I’m making an impact on the day-to-day routine of my employees, truly means so much to me.
Just this past April, I was recognized by Goodwill at the Power of Work Luncheon and awarded the 2019 Opportunity Award. Receiving that award was not just an accomplishment for myself, but it really felt like an accomplishment for my family. I was able to share what happened to my family and how we’ve all managed to move past the tragedies despite the pain and suffering.
My family was very proud of me for that. I hope that by sharing my story, I can reach at least one person who may be going through a similar struggle with addiction and depression and teach them it does get better. That there is a light at the end of the tunnel. If I can impact just one life through sharing my story, that would be my biggest success—even bigger than receiving the award itself.
Contact Info:
- Website: goodwilldenver.org
- Email: contactus@goodwilldenver.org
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/goodwilldenver
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/GoodwillDenver
- Twitter: twitter.com/GoodwillDenver
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