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YWCA classes offer new opportunities

Lori Kinnear, center, explains the functions of a personal computer to Jessica Skok, left, and Johrene Chappell at the downtown YWCA.
Paula M. Davenport Staff writer
Lori Kinnear, center, explains the functions of a personal computer to Jessica Skok, left, and Johrene Chappell at the downtown YWCA.

Candi LaDucer is re-inventing herself. A former public relations professional with Microsoft Corp., she admits she washed her career away with alcohol and cocaine.

She took to painting houses in Seattle instead.

On Tuesday, the 39-year-old joined five other women in the downtown YWCA Opportunity Center to catch up on their computer skills.

“This is a great resource. I want to get back on the job market,” said the recovering LaDucer, who’s striving to start fresh in Spokane.

LaDucer is among the men and women the YWCA wants to help find living-wage jobs. Under the umbrella of its recently retooled Opportunity Center, the nonprofit is running a free computer lab, offering inexpensive classes to get people ready to work and is expanding Our Sister’s Closet, offering gently-worn businesswear to women.

The YWCA hopes to inspire homemakers, dropouts, teens aging out of foster care, the underemployed, the homeless and people moving off welfare, said Natalie Kenney, director of YWCA child and family services programs.

“There’s a gap between available jobs and the skills needed to do them,” she said.

Lori Kinnear, Opportunity Center manager, designed the programs so students get lots of personal attention and coaxing. Topics include how to handle difficult people, write resumés, make good impressions during job interviews and how to use various software programs.

“And we encourage you to come back and use computer lab to look for work, do research or just practice,” she told a group of students Tuesday.

Two Gonzaga University business majors on work-study initiatives are helping run the lab, teach classes and work individually with clients, Kinnear said. In a separate initiative, the YWCA will launch a women’s breakfast club next month. Kinnear and Kenney said they want to connect women unsure of how to advance themselves with women of achievement, authority and power.

Meetings will include a continental breakfast and a special female guest who’ll mingle with members. The inaugural meeting will open at 7:30 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 11, in the downtown YWCA Comstock Room. All women are welcome to attend. Cost is $7, payable at the door or in advance at 509-326-1190.