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Grad Howard Thornton
2010 GRAD HOWARD THORNTON
As far back as he can remember, Howard Thornton has been surrounded by automobiles.
“My father was a mechanic and my stepdad,” he said. “I pretty much grew into it.”
An August 2010 graduate of NCC’s Youth and Adult Automotive Training Center program, Thornton landed a job at Goodyear Brake-o-Rama in Elizabeth three months later. He does everything from engine replacements and transmission repairs to working on radiators and axles.
“There’s no job that can’t be done,” he said. “I’m always looking to get the job done. You just have to be motivated and be willing to learn and do the work.”
The Journey to Financial Freedom
Ask Esperanza Maldonado about the future, and she jokes, “I plan to be a millionaire by the time I’m thirty.” The goal is ambitious, especially for someone who is 27, but success is certainly part of the picture for the talented student at the Youth Automotive Training Center.
Like a number of her fellow students, Ms. Maldonado entered YATC when she was living at a halfway house. She so impressed YATC founder Richard Liebler that he hired her as a sales person at his auto dealership in Hillside.
“I have the gift of gab,” Ms. Maldonado says. “I love selling cars. It’s a blessing really. I could never have gotten a job like this anywhere else.”
The mother of a seven-year-old son, Ms. Maldonado says that she became interested in YATC because she likes cars. “I’ve really enjoyed YATC,” she says. Ms. Maldonado will graduate in August and plans to open her own auto body shop after she returns to school to get a degree in business and marketing.
The salesperson and student keeps a crushing schedule. She lives in Paterson and does not have a driver’s license because of fines imposed when she was arrested. To get to YATC in Newark, she leaves home at 6 AM and takes two different buses, the Newark subway and another bus. Then, when classes are finished at 1PM, she takes two more buses to get to work at Hillside Auto Mall by 2PM. If she can’t snag a ride from a coworker, Ms. Esperanza does not get home until 11:30.
Recently, Ms. Maldonado testified before a legislative committee in Trenton in favor of provisional drivers licenses that would allow a person to drive to and from work or school.
“You do things and there are consequences, but when do they end?” she says.
Ms. Maldonado wants to pay off her fines and have driver’s license again by the end of summer. “I feel like I’m in an upward spiral,” she says. “I’ve already been at the bottom so there is no place to go but up and I’m enjoying the journey.”
New Community Mission
To help residents of inner cities improve the quality of their lives to reflect individual God-given dignity and personal achievement. Under One Roof
Ask Esperanza Maldonado about the future, and she jokes, “I plan to be a millionaire by the time I’m thirty.” The goal is ambitious, especially for someone who is 27, but success is certainly part of the picture for the talented student at the Youth Automotive Training Center.
Like a number of her fellow students, Ms. Maldonado entered YATC when she was living at a halfway house. She so impressed YATC founder Richard Liebler that he hired her as a sales person at his auto dealership in Hillside.
“I have the gift of gab,” Ms. Maldonado says. “I love selling cars. It’s a blessing really. I could never have gotten a job like this anywhere else.”
The mother of a seven-year-old son, Ms. Maldonado says that she became interested in YATC because she likes cars. “I’ve really enjoyed YATC,” she says. Ms. Maldonado will graduate in August and plans to open her own auto body shop after she returns to school to get a degree in business and marketing.
The salesperson and student keeps a crushing schedule. She lives in Paterson and does not have a driver’s license because of fines imposed when she was arrested. To get to YATC in Newark, she leaves home at 6 AM and takes two different buses, the Newark subway and another bus. Then, when classes are finished at 1PM, she takes two more buses to get to work at Hillside Auto Mall by 2PM. If she can’t snag a ride from a coworker, Ms. Esperanza does not get home until 11:30.
Recently, Ms. Maldonado testified before a legislative committee in Trenton in favor of provisional drivers licenses that would allow a person to drive to and from work or school.
“You do things and there are consequences, but when do they end?” she says.
Ms. Maldonado wants to pay off her fines and have driver’s license again by the end of summer. “I feel like I’m in an upward spiral,” she says. “I’ve already been at the bottom so there is no place to go but up and I’m enjoying the journey.”
New Community Mission
To help residents of inner cities improve the quality of their lives to reflect individual God-given dignity and personal achievement. Under One Roof