We Are Repowered: Shannon’s Story

We Are Repowered

This month, we are proud to highlight the incredible stories of growth, transformation, and community within Repowered. As part of our ongoing campaign, we will be sharing the journeys of an employee graduate, a dedicated board member, a newly graduated work-readiness employee, and one of our valued partner organizations. Their stories are a testament to the power of second chances and the impact of investing in human capital to create positive change.

Shannon’s Story

Today, we want to hold space for one of our program graduates, Shannon, whose journey exemplifies resilience and hope. Shannon started at Repowered in our Workforce Development Training Program and is now an integral part of our team as Facilities & Resource Coordinator. This is Shannon’s story in her own words:

“I started at Repowered a little over three years ago. I was living in a halfway house, finishing my sentence, when I came to Tech Dump, which is Repowered today. I came from a long stint in prison. I was ready to change my life and be a better person. I did not want to go back to prison, but I needed help. I was starting with basically nothing – no home, I was living with my daughter; and no hope, I was still grieving my son who I lost to suicide a few months earlier. Repowered took me as I was. They didn’t judge me, they embraced me and have helped build me into the person I am today. It has not been easy, there have been plenty of times when I’ve wanted to quit, but every time, Repowered was there to support me and I knew I needed to do this for myself and my family.

Today, I can honestly say I love working at Repowered with people that have become family. I started out on the teardown line, tearing electronics apart and learning what was recyclable and valuable. I’m a bit competitive and liked the challenge. I used to race the guys to see if I could take things apart quicker than them. At the time, there were only 2 women on the line and I really liked being different while being part of a community who understood me. Life was good for a little while when I was again hit by another tragedy. My fiancé was killed in a motorcycle accident. With him gone, I was lost again. I was about to be released from the halfway house with nowhere to go. I ended up going to live with my daughter and grandson. Just making the best out of everything. Repowered helped me process my losses through our partner Creative Kuponya along with some of the great people here.

I have since grown even more. I moved from the line to maintenance, to Special Projects Lead/Maintenance, to my current position of Facilities & Resources Coordinator. I fostered a child and took in my nieces. What was a family of 3 grew to 9 people living in a 2-bedroom apartment. All of the encouragement has lit a fire in me. I went from not knowing where I was going to live to now owning a 4-bedroom, 3-bath home. In the next couple of weeks, I will have my solar panels installed. I have also started a business with my family. These are all things that I thought were just dreams that I have achieved with the support of my Repowered family.

I love helping people. One of the things I am able to do is find resources for everyone to make sure they are able to eat. I go to a food shelf on Fridays and pick up food for anyone who needs/wants it. We are also able to make sure our team members here eat at lunch if they do not have anything. I love being able to do these things. It helps take some stress off and enables our guys to focus on their training instead of worrying about some of their basic needs. I have been able to share information with our guys about the Rondo CLT and CLCLT in Minneapolis to encourage them into being homeowners.

I want to thank you for all of the support you have given us at Repowered. Without it, I am not sure if I would have been able to be gainfully employed and make all of the great things in my life happen.”

Shannon

Shannon, Facilities & Resource Coordinator at Repowered, Photography by Scott Streble.

Join Us in Supporting People Like Shannon

Shannon’s story is just one example of how Repowered is creating lasting change in our community. But we need your support to continue investing in people like Shannon and giving others a second chance to rebuild their lives. Your donation helps provide vital training, resources, and support for individuals to overcome barriers, transform their futures, and make our communities stronger.

If you believe in the power of second chances and want to be part of this life-changing mission, consider making a donation today. Together, we can create a brighter future for all.

‘Donate’ button at the top right of the page to get involved!