Upcoming job fair helps people with disabilities find employment

Thursday morning starting at 9 am, job seekers will be lined up around the Hope Lutheran Church in Palm Desert hoping to secure a job. The man behind the event was born with a disability and now he’s inviting others to pursue a job when it may seem out of reach for some.

“Maybe working doing people’s makeup. A makeup artist,” said Zoe Gregor, a local woman born with down syndrome.

Being a make-up artist is a dream Zoe hopes to fulfill one day. She was born with Down Syndrome 19 years ago and until now her mom, Laura Gregor, says Zoe’s independence is at the forefront.

“Now that she’s an adult, it’s a different situation. Now you’re thinking about education. Where is she going to maybe go to college? What’s she going to do for a job? Is she going to have a job,” Laura said.

Vail Horton was faced with the same reality years ago.

“I was born without legs here in the Coachella Valley,” Horton said. “When I was born, not a lot of people thought that I would start companies work and be married.”

Horton is the founder of JobsNow.org and has helped thousands of people across the west coast secure jobs, regardless of their physical abilities.

“There’s really no one that can’t get a job,” Horton said. “We help connect those individuals with the right organization and break down some of the misinvolved with hiring people with disabilities.”

On Thursday, dozens of vendors will participate in a job fair hosted at Hope Lutheran Church in Palm Desert from 9 am to 1 pm. Horton expects 50 candidates to be hired on the spot and at least 90 to leave with interviews.

“I hope there are employers out there that recognize that a lot of these kids, even autistic kids, and kids with physical disabilities or intellectual disabilities, they can, they just need the opportunity, the guidance, and the patience. and you have a great employee,” Laura said.

The free job fair is a free event and open to everyone, click here if you’d like to register for it.