In 2015, Rachel Dell had just moved to Indianapolis from her hometown in rural Georgia and was looking for a new lease on life.

After separating from her husband of 10 years, Samantha Russell turned to drugs in an effort to cope with the stress and anxiety she was experiencing. 

When Tenera Lloyd enrolled in the Nurse-Family Partnership program, she was in an abusive relationship and struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder. A pregnant mom with limited outside support, she felt hopelessly stuck in her situation but knew she wanted better for her daughter. After going into labor three weeks early due to a domestic situation, she knew it was time to take action.

Since 1951, Goodwill® organizations throughout the United States and Canada have come together to recognize Goodwill Industries Week and highlight the defining principle of our mission — to change lives. For 120 years, the Goodwill network has worked with people experiencing barriers to employment by helping them secure a job, increase their education and access resources critical to achieving independence.

Indianapolis Metropolitan High School is a best-fit school for teenage students experiencing circumstances that may present a barrier to education. In 2020, those circumstances included a pandemic that entirely uprooted education across the globe, but our students adapted and persevered, and our faculty did an amazing job at ensuring we could continue to provide high-quality, rigorous instruction and individualized support. 

There are more than 447,450,000 working-age Hoosiers who lack a high school diploma. Prior to The Excel Center, Goodwill’s unique high school for adults, there were few options for people like Dontre Smith who wanted to earn one.

Meet Dakota McLaughlin. Dakota is a proud graduate of The Excel Center® and is working towards earning a Master’s degree in Social Work. Just a few years ago, however, he was in a very different situation.  

In 1989, upon graduating from high school, Shawn Basore joined Goodwill’s Commercial Services division. He had no work history or job skills and participated in Goodwill’s Work Experience Program, which provided job training and employment services to persons with disabilities, preparing them for successful employment. 

When Edward Rickenbach first joined Goodwill in 2009 as an assistant site leader, he was struggling with homelessness and severe depression — a diagnosis he had first received in college but learned would be a lifelong battle. In just 18 months, he worked hard and was promoted to site leader, where he was responsible for managing the store and all of its employees.

Anyone who has spent time at The Excel Center® in Clarksville during the last three years knows Ana Gonzalez, but not many know the full story behind her path to Goodwill. Ana is the director of the Young Learner’s Child Care (YLCC) in Clarksville, where her time is split between planning each day’s activities and putting those plans into action. Years before her time at Goodwill, Ana’s journey began in her small hometown in Mexico. She enjoyed her childhood, but as the region grew more complicated with heavy cartel presence, her family decided to move to the United States.