“I consider it a privilege to help in even a small way as people take new steps to create new lives for themselves. It is a beautiful and humbling thing.”
— Tom Sherman, TCR Volunteer since 2016
Tom Sherman knows what it means to need another chance.
He describes his own career as bumpy. Along the way, people gave him opportunities to learn from mistakes and begin again.
Now, he tries to offer that same belief to others.
“I’ve had a bumpy career, and I kept being given second chances,” Tom said. “My way of paying it forward is believing that everybody deserves a second chance.”
For 10 years, Tom has been one of Twin Cities R!SE’s most committed volunteers and champions.
You can regularly find him at Tuesday Career Club sessions helping R!SERs with mock interviews, résumés, LinkedIn, elevator pitches, job searching, and applications.
He is just as committed when TCR comes together for community events. Tom is often one of the first people to arrive and one of the last to leave.
But for him, volunteering is about much more than helping with a task.
“Job hunting can be lonely and frustrating,” Tom said. “Career Club at Twin Cities R!SE helps people remember that they’re not in this alone.”
Tom often meets R!SERs as they finish training and prepare for what comes next.
Some are unsure how to talk about their strengths. Others have experienced rejection and started questioning what they have to offer.
Tom helps them find the words.
A simple conversation about how a friend, family member, or former coworker might describe them can uncover the beginning of an elevator pitch or a stronger interview answer.
The strengths were already there. Sometimes, someone simply needs help recognizing and communicating them.
Tom remembers supporting one R!SER who had experienced repeated rejection. He did not try to dismiss how hard that was.
Instead, he reminded her of something those closed doors had not changed.
“You have something to offer,” he told her.
That belief is part of what keeps Tom connected to Twin Cities R!SE.
“I love meeting the R!SERs as they complete their classes,” he said. “They’re newly recharged, more confident, and have a clear understanding of what they bring to the world.”
He sees TCR as a place where people are supported without being defined by what they have experienced.
“What I see on the walls at Twin Cities R!SE is the opposite of shame,” Tom said.
R!SERs build skills through career training and Personal Empowerment while receiving guidance and support as they work toward their goals.
Tom sees their determination firsthand.
“They embrace the knowledge, the tools, and techniques they get from TCR and they leverage them to create new levels of career success for themselves,” he said.
After 10 years, Tom still shows up for Career Club, community events, practice interviews, and the moments when a R!SER begins to recognize what they bring to the table.
“I consider it a privilege to help in even a small way,” Tom said. “It is a beautiful and humbling thing.”