People looking for work in Statesboro and Bulloch County have a new place to turn.
    Goodwill Industries of the Coastal Empire launched a Job Connection Career Center Thursday alongside a now-expanded Goodwill Retail Store on U.S. Highway 80.
    The center will offer free resources and services to job-seekers throughout region, providing work training and assisting individuals’ efforts to gain employment.
    It will allow people to receive personal assistance with job searches, improve computer and language ability and learn various work-related skills, according to Brenda Pollen, the interim vice president of mission services for Goodwill of the Coastal Empire.
    “When people come, they will have an opportunity to look for employment, gain access to employer contacts, participate in workshops, take GED preparation courses, and take financial literacy and ESL classes. They’ll also have access to legal counsel, and family strengthening workshops,” Pollen said. “We are excited by the efforts that have gone into this project and hope that people enjoy the resources that are provided by this center.”
    While an emphasis is placed on assistance programs “for persons with disabilities, persons with acquired brain injuries, those that are homeless, veterans, youth and to those who are part of the Hispanic population,” the Goodwill Career Center will provide services to any and all visitors to the facility for free, Pollen said.
    The center is the sixth opened by Goodwill of the Coastal Empire — other free centers are located in such places as Brunswick, Richmond Hill and Lyons.
    “The community (in Statesboro) has been very supportive, for several years, of everything that we do. We felt that there was a stronger need for our service, not just in retail, but as a way to make sure people with barriers to employment — whether that is a disability or an economic barrier — had help to achieve their independence, get a job and get a paycheck of their own,” said Mohsen Badran, the president and CEO of Goodwill of the Coastal Empire. “(Other centers) have been very successful. Any given one of our centers serves about 3,500 people every year.”
    According to Badran, who spoke Thursday at a ribbon-cutting ceremony, Goodwill helped more than 1,400 individuals find jobs last year. 
    “There are so many people in our communities that need this kind of service,” he said. “We are hoping we can increase our impact on the economy of Statesboro.”
    Inside the new center, visitors will be provided access to computers — several line the wall —copiers, a fax machine and telephones.
    The facility will, traditionally, be open from 9 a.m. until 6 p.m. However, staff will work some “non-traditional hours, including some afternoons and some weekends,” Pollen said.
    Approximately 30 people attended a ceremony Thursday morning to christen the new center, including Statesboro Mayor Joe Brannen and Statesboro-Bulloch Chamber of Commerce President Phyllis Thompson, who thanked Goodwill for its efforts to benefit the residents and economy of Statesboro and Bulloch County.
    The Goodwill Job Connection Career Center is at 812 U.S. Highway 80, inside the shopping plaza that includes the Goodwill Retail Store.
    For additional information about the center, call Goodwill in Statesboro at (912) 489-8095.
   
    Jeff Harrison may be reached at (912) 489-9454.