Business News
Local Xerox Sales Executive to Assist Houston Charity During One-Year, Paid Social Service Leave
Tuesday 12. February 2008 - Rosana Schoonmaker is taking the skills that she acquired during her 17-year career at Xerox Corporation (NYSE: XRX) to better the lives of working poor families in her community of Houston.
Schoonmaker is participating in a year-long, paid sabbatical through the Xerox Social Service Leave program, believed to be the oldest of its kind in American business. She is one of six Xerox employees granted leave this year.
During her Social Service Leave, Schoonmaker will work with Skills for Living, a non-profit organization that offers free classes in finance, career advancement and life skills to working poor families. She is applying the sales, marketing and communication experience she gained at Xerox to build community awareness, increase its volunteer base, and encourage more corporate sponsors of Skills for Living’s “20-20 Power Workshop” and its “Real Life” program for teens. Together, Schoonmaker and Skills for Living hope to expand and fund the programs to reach more than 400 low-income families in the greater Houston area.
Even before she was awarded the paid leave, Schoonmaker was drawn to volunteer for the program because of the amazing results it achieves in her community. On average, Skills for Living program participants are able to increase their income by 48 percent and their net worth by 137 percent after participating in the year-long “20-20 Power Workshop.” Skills for Living also offers a one-month summer program for high school students to prepare them for life as young adults. The program includes college funding strategies, how to better market themselves, apply for jobs, manage their money and learn life skills.
Schoonmaker was born and educated in the Philippines and grew up watching poor children work to survive, selling newspapers and doing odd jobs to earn enough money for food. She vowed that she would one day help those who were helping themselves. Schoonmaker hopes to someday establish a Skills for Living program in the Philippines, where she was first inspired.
“Helping people achieve more in their life has always been a dream of mine, and I look forward to the challenges and rewards of the coming year,” said Schoonmaker.
“Rosana is working with the press, major corporations, non-profit collaborators and school districts to bring Skills for Living’s programs to working poor families and at-risk teens,” says Lorraine Decker, president of Skills for Living Inc. “Our mission is to break the cycle of poverty and that can only be done through education and relationships. Rosana is an important member of our team and will add the marketing direction our organization needs to expand the program within Texas and nationally. We are truly blessed to have her leadership skills and talent with Skills for Living.”
Xerox began its Social Service Leave program in 1971 to foster employee involvement and provide volunteer assistance in communities where Xerox does business. Since then, 481 leaves have been granted. Employees who have been with the company at least five years are eligible to apply for paid leaves of up to one year.
Skills For Living is about breaking the cycle of poverty. As a grass-root organization, Skills For Living (S4L) is dedicated to permanently improving the lives of low-income working poor Houston families. S4L provides education and positive, practical mentoring to teach families how to define goals and implement strategies to enhance their lives and the lives of their children. S4L focuses on the working poor because these are the most vulnerable families in America. If poor and on public assistance, families often qualify for food stamps, health care, child care, housing, public transportation, clothing and paid utilities. If a person works and earns minimum wage, his or her income is often below $16,000. Supporting a family of four on this income is impossible.