LABELLE — The Hendry County Economic Development Council congratulates Marlin Vaughn of the Joseph Project 863 Inc. on winning the Champion Award, as well as Soraida Trevino for winning the Achievement Award.

Special to the Lake Okeechobee News
FORT MYERS — Marlin Vaughn (center) won the Champion Award, a recognition from the Southwest Florida Workforce Development Board. Chairman Mike Jackson (left) and board member Diana Bello presented it to him.

They, along with Celena Wagers of LaBelle, who also won an Achievement Award, were recognized Sept. 6 at the 2019 Southwest Florida Workforce Development Board Annual Appreciation Dinner & Awards Ceremony, at the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Beach Resort in Fort Myers.

The Champion Award is given in recognition of “accomplishments far exceeding expectations of the SWFL Workforce Development Board’s mission in contributing to a quality workforce for Southwest Florida.”

The Achievement Award is given to individuals “for personal accomplishments far exceeding expectations by successfully overcoming barriers on the way to economic self-sufficiency.”

Joe Paterno, executive director of the board’s agency called CareerSource Southwest Florida, said by phone Friday, Sept. 20, that Mr. Vaughn received the Champion Award “because of all the work he does.” Mr. Vaughn founded the Joseph Project in 2013 to help fill the gap for working poor people who don’t qualify for assistance from CareerSource due to eligibility issues.

Mr. Paterno explained the award “goes to either individuals or businesses who kind of go out of their way to do things in the overall workforce initiative.”

Special to the Lake Okeechobee News
Loraida Trevino won the Achievement Award, nominated by the Clewiston office staff for CareerSource Southwest Florida, presented by Mr. Jackson.

Mr. Vaughn, he said, “works very closely with our office out of Clewiston.”

When a would-be client can’t qualify for their help, “we refer to Marlin or Marlin refers to us and we make sure that individual has the dollars necessary to be able to go to a training and be able to get the skills they need to become employed and productive.”

Mr. Vaughn was recommended for the award by the Clewiston CareerSource office, one of whose staff, Yvar Pierre, also advanced Soraida’s name for the Achievement Award. And Rebecca Meeler was the staffer who put Celena’s name forward.

“This young lady (Soraida),” Mr. Paterno said, “is one of our customers who overcame barriers and who became very successful.”

He explained: “What we try to do is to recognize people who have made that accomplishment, taking a step forward from being down and out to now being basically self-sufficient, being able to have a job, being trained, being able to support themselves, their family, whatever is necessary.

“And so we recognize that in front of our board of directors … That’s the purpose of what we did at our dinner. We also recognized four other individuals from throughout our region who made the same transition from needing assistance, down and out, personal issues, to now, like I said, working, living on their own, supporting themselves and their families and actually fulfilling what they had hoped the American Dream is, I guess!”