Building a Brighter Future
Dwayne’s Path to Career Success
Dwayne Walker’s journey with Goodwill began in August 2024 when he connected with Goodwill Industries of West Michigan after his wife encouraged him to sign up for an HVAC class. At the time, Dwayne says, “I didn’t have any idea what I wanted to do with my career.”
As a member of the first Goodwill HVAC class, Dwayne received free training that helped him secure a job as an HVAC Technician with Lascko Services in Muskegon.
With determination and the support of Goodwill’s team, Dwayne learned electrical systems, HVAC components, and basic troubleshooting during his training. He recalls, “Learning the electrical wasn’t too difficult since I had a little experience with it prior, but the refrigeration was challenging.”
Before starting the class, Dwayne worked part-time at the post office. However, about a month into the program, he and his family agreed that he should quit his job and focus entirely on learning HVAC. Armed with a resume he built with the help of Goodwill’s Workforce Development staff, the experience of mock interviews, and the knowledge he gained in class, Dwayne applied for an HVAC Technician position at Lascko—and was hired.
He began by performing basic residential system checks and quickly advanced to handling technician calls. Today, he works independently with his own service van, responding to residential service calls dispatched by Lascko.
“The financial freedom is a blessing. I get to do more things with my daughter. My wife and I even took a vacation after two years of rough living.”
Dwayne
Recently, Dwayne has taken on more advanced residential HVAC technician work and now earns $20.78 per hour. “At my one-year anniversary, I’ll be at $24, and within five years, I’ll be at $34.”
When asked how his HVAC experience has changed his life, he responded enthusiastically, “The financial freedom is a blessing. I get to do more things with my daughter. My wife and I even took a vacation after two years of rough living.”
Reflecting on his journey, Dwayne expressed deep appreciation for the support he received from Goodwill and encourages others seeking meaningful employment to take advantage of its programs. When asked if he would recommend Goodwill to others, he replied, “Yes… I’ve been telling everyone! I have no debt. This changed my life.”
For those struggling to find or keep a job, Dwayne offers this advice: “Find something that you enjoy. For the first time in my life, I beat my alarm when it’s time to go to work.”
BRES Grant Funding: Goodwill was awarded a two-year Barrier Removal and Employment Success (BRES) Expansion Grant from the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO) in 2024 to provide programming to support employment and reemployment of at-risk individuals. The HVAC-R program is one of several certification programs Goodwill is launching in 2024 with the support of these funds.
