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PMH and Telamon grow a crop of talented workers
12/11/2008
The hallways at Pender Memorial Hospital sparkle and shine like new these days, and Demetrio Ramos definitely takes pride in that.

Just over a year ago, Mr. Ramos, who is originally from the state of Oaxaco in Mexico, started a three month 'internship' at PMH as part of Telamon Corporation's work experience program. By February 2008, he was hired as a full-time Pender employee in the Environmental Services Department with a valuable set of job skills under his belt and an ever expanding English vocabulary.

'My English is not very good,' said Mr. Ramos before proceeding to conduct a full interview in his second language with relative ease. 'Everybody is good to work with here,' he said, listing too many people by name to include.

Telamon Corporation is a non-profit federally funded organization that partners with Job Link and the Employment Security Commission to place disadvantaged farm workers with area businesses so they can learn new skills and pursue other career opportunities. When working for a non-profit organization such as Pender Memorial Hospital, Telamon pays the employee's wages up to 480 hours of work in exchange for the host agency's on-the-job training.

Aubrey Avery, the case manager for Telamon, is always going out into the community to recruit individuals such as Mr. Ramos to participate in the program.

'What I really look for is someone who has decided to stay locally in Pender, Duplin, New Hanover or Bladen counties,' said Mr. Avery. 'Instead of following the crops, they are able to stay in the area and their kids can stay in school and make friends. It changes the whole family's outlook on life.'

The Telamon Corporation benefits both the worker and the employer by helping the employee to get experience in a new career field and the business to function more efficiently.

'Of course, it helps our budget to have extra assistance temporarily without the extra cost,' said Becky Rivenbark, manager of the Environmental Services Department at PMH, 'but there's so much else that I see that the hospital gains from it. I just think it's a good way to pay back our community.'

Currently, there are two individuals who are receiving their three months of training at PMH in various departments depending on the employee's career goals. Four people have been hired by the hospital as full-time employees after completing their work experience training.

'I am so pleased with our entire Environmental Services staff for how well they work with and help coach the workers from the Telamon program,' said David Long, administrator for Pender Memorial Hospital. 'Thanks to their hard work and Becky Rivenbark's leadership as the manager of that department, our hospital earned a sanitation score of 98 during our most recent inspection. That's a great achievement.'

'The Telamon employees are a pleasure,' said Ms. Rivenbark. 'They are thankful for their jobs and they take pride in what they do, and we get to learn about another culture. It makes work interesting!'

If you are interested in employment opportunities at Pender Memorial Hospital, please call (910) 259-5451 or visit our web site at www.pendermemorial.org. Pender Memorial Hospital, an affiliate of New Hanover Regional Medical Center, is a not-for-profit, community hospital serving all of Pender County and the surrounding areas since 1951.

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