Mark grateful to Salvos for bringing brighter future into view
The Salvos saved my life, they gave me a future I wouldn’t have otherwise had.
- Mark Wilder, Salvation Army employee, Wollongong.
Mark Wilder’s CV ticks all the right boxes. He is working towards an advanced higher degree in social work majoring in bereavement, loss and trauma counselling, and is seeking endorsement as a behavioural psychotherapist. He has also combined his social work studies with the Flinders University Department of Psychiatry’s Mental Health Sciences program.
Mark is a keen worker with relevant voluntary experience, but being born blind meant it has taken him many years to find a regular job where he could use the numerous skills he has acquired.
“I always came second,” Mark says. When applying for jobs, not having a driver’s licence and no previous full-time experience always set him back.
Mark was born with congenital cataracts, rendering him blind from birth. He spent the first few years of his life in and out of hospitals, with no real change. Now, at 44, Mark says his condition is stable. “What I can see is all dependent on light; the more light, the more I can see.”
After gaining employment at The Salvation Army in Wollongong, Mark says his life changed significantly. “Now I can demonstrate my skills, despite my disability.”
Mark runs a Smart Recovery group through The Salvation Army’s First Floor Program - a centre that offers support to disadvantaged and troubled families. His day can include helping people work through a whole range of scenarios – from behavioural issues to suicide bereavement support.
Working with many different people and being actively involved in the community has given Mark a whole new outlook on life. He says the support the receives from Wollongong Salvation Army has given him meaning and structure in his life, the two things he seeks to help his clients find.
“This job has changed my life, I’ve re-found my faith,” Mark says. “I’ve learnt to be a leader and furthered my skills more than I imagined possible.”
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