Employee Stories: Katherine Fiessinger
Before employment with PHCNW, Kat spent two years in the hospital battling a serious illness. She said she spent more time in the hospital than out. As she began to recuperate, she had a strong desire to get back to work. Portland Habilitation Center was the vehicle she used to do so.
“Being at home so much was making me more and more depressed,” said Katherine "Kat" Fiessinger. “But when I went back to work, it was like okay, I can live again.”
Kat said the transition back to work was difficult because her mind was willing, but her body didn’t want to cooperate. During this transition, she learned a great deal about herself being out of work for that extended period of time.
“You have to dig down within yourself,” she said. “The only way you are going to move forward and move on is by reaching out to others and stepping outside your comfort zone. You have to put yourself out there. There are days it’s really tough to get up and go, especially in the beginning. But as you get back in touch with the outside world again you realize how much you need it. You have to reach out to other people and they will reach out to you.”
Kat has worked as part of the General Services Administration (GSA) in Spokane, WA for a little over a year. She said she is grateful for her job, because not only does she have some disabilities, but she feels her age is a deterring factor.
“A lot of people look at me and don’t want to hire a woman who is over thirty, and I am well over that,” she said. “It’s nice to be part of company that puts you in and says, ‘okay here’s a job for you.’ I appreciate that.”
On the days when it is particularly difficult to want to go to work, she thinks about her responsibilities there and the commitments she had made to other people.
“I do a make a difference,” she said. “If I didn’t fulfill my obligation, it wouldn’t get done. Plus, I think I get back more than I give.”
