Good advice from one who knows

Charles Gillette knows what it is to go without.

But he also knows what it is to get back on track. And he's bound and determined to help others do that same thing.

Diagnosed with Crohn's Disease at an early age, he was forced to give up his factory job when the auto-immune bowel disease progressed and made work impossible. As a results, he had no income for one year.

"I tolerate change in my life fairly well, but with your spouse it's different. You don't want that person to suffer, and my wife and I were to the point of whether to buy my meds or food," the now-36-year-old Gillette recalls.

Admittedly, times were hard for Gillette. "I had a wonderful landlord, but at one point, I was six months behind in the rent," Gillette said. He remembers a feeling of desperation before any governmental assistance began.

As a provision of receiving some of those government benefits, Gillette opted to take a job at Goodwill/Easter Seals Miami Valley. And that placement became life-changing.

"Originally, I took that placement because when Goodwill was on South Main Street in Lima, I could walk there from my house. I knew if I couldn't drive, I could at least walk to work," he said.

For the next few months, Gillette baled clothes, did work on the loading dock and anything he could find to occupy his day there. "Getting back to work felt good to me, and the people there were good about working with me and my medical restrictions."

Before long, an opening as a job coach presented itself, and co-workers encouraged Gillette to apply for the job at the Cable Road office of Goodwill/Easter Seals Miami Valley.

Last November, Gillette showed up for his first day as a job coach, and found that his past experiences play into his new job.

"Everything I went through is helping me now. The people I work with can relate to my life experience, and I feel they value that I've been where they are now," Gillette said.

"It's not hard for me to relate to what many of them are going through. Like I had to do, I help them fine tune the skills they have and work them into a new job. I'm just that buddy standing beside them telling them it will be all right."

And coping with his Crohn's is also different now.

"I've always been very open about Crohn's. The only person who needs to be serious with my illness is me. And I've learned that it's a barrier, not a disability. It's just something I need to work around," Gillette said.

And that echoes the Goodwill/Easter Seals sentiment. "We need to focus more on what we can do, not what we can't do. We all have things that limit us, and we need to learn to work around that," said Mari Jo Sellers, marketing specialist with Goodwill Easter Seals.

These days, Gillette is proud to be part of a group that helps others through their hard days.

"I believe that we, as a group, are trying to help people change their lives," he said.

Gillette said that through all of this, he's learned to "hang in there. Even if you feel you're at your wits end, hang in there. It will get better. Just take one day at a time. Do what you're asked to do, and do it to the best of your ability, and you can't fail."

Words of wisdom from one who knows. 

Kim Kincaid writes about the big and little things that involve area residents. If you have an item of interest, call her at 419-993-2059 or 800-686-9924. She can be reached by e-mail at kkincaid@limanews.com.