Neisha

Neisha applied to The Challenge Program in March 2024. At first, she thought, “I can’t do this!” but her Instructor Vince Hernandez (with CP for over 25 years) pushed and motivated her. “He broke it all down for me…he doesn’t give up.”

Vince described Neisha as super nice, ambitious, and not afraid of new challenges. She became Vince’s “go to” – she knew what tools to use and could handle jobs from start to finish.

Neisha said “I felt good at The Challenge Program – I wanted to be here. Each day it was ‘What are we doing today?’” Her two favorite projects were a timber frame shed with a deck and ottomans built from Princeton squash court floorboards, an extremely tedious process involving removing nails and sanding. Neisha and other trainees went on a road trip with staff to deliver the ottomans to Princeton, a great experience for them. She also earned her Flagger certificate and feels she really accomplished things at CP: “I loved it. I can do whatever I put my mind to.”

Her career goal and dream is to help people. She recently enrolled in Del Tech’s Human Services and Psychology program and moved into her own apartment. She comes back to visit CP and feels a real connection with the staff, who sometimes help her with schoolwork and give her advice. We are so proud of Neisha!