Sao recently moved from his father’s house in Oklahoma to St. Paul, MN, to live with his mother.  Sao was not too familiar with the new city and didn’t know where to look for employment.  He made little effort to find a job and his mother was frustrated about his staying at home all the time and lack of productiveness.

Sao’s mother Kai was an active participant in HAP’s Parent Support Group.  During one of the sessions she inquired about resources to help out Sao and found out about HAP’s YouthLEAD program. He was subsequently connected with the YouthLEAD counselor and met him to learn more about the program.

With additional encouragement from his mother, Sao joined YouthLEAD. Sao met with his counselor and received coaching on how to find jobs and gain access to a wider variety of jobs.  Sao also had opportunities to utilize the Broadband Access Program’s Computer Lab at HAP that is open to the public.  He was shown different websites to search for jobs and obtained job leads.

It was a happy day when Sao was hired by the new Saigon Express Restaurant in Maplewood, MN. Both Sao and his mother were pleased and grateful for the services YouthLEAD provided to Sao and that he is now productive and able to help support the family.

HAP is proud to tell his story.