David and Marta Pace are proving education and training is the key to a better life, and they’re doing so with the help of the Workforce Investment Act.

David and Marta’s training helped them go from struggling to support themselves and their children on $13,000 a year to having good, stable incomes and rewarding work in nursing.

Along the way they got guidance, encouragement, and financial support from WIA services, provided locally by LKLP Community Action Council in Hyden and administered throughout eastern Kentucky by the Eastern Kentucky Concentrated Employment Program, Inc (EKCEP).

“WIA made it easier for us to go to college. If it wasn’t for this program I think we probably wouldn’t have been able to do it,” David said.

“It really helped us out,” Marta added with a smile.

David recently finished training to become a registered nurse (RN) and got a job he loves at a local dialysis clinic. Marta recently earned a licensed practical nurse (LPN) diploma and is currently waiting to take her licensing exam.

Before they returned to school, David and Marta had little training past high school and a history of minimum wage and fast food jobs, which made it hard to find work that would support the large, loving family they both wanted.

David took a job as a cook at a local nursing home and eventually moved into a Certified Nurses Aide position, where he grew to love helping people. Marta suggested both of them should look into the possibilities for careers in nursing.

While they started working on their educations they also started working on their family. Within five years David and Marta added four children to Marta’s two children from a previous marriage. The growing family made both free time and money scarce at their house.

David found it difficult to keep up with the commute from Hyden to nursing classes at Eastern Kentucky University in Richmond and had to take some time off from school. It looked like their dreams of higher education might not become reality.

Fortunately, Marta knew about the WIA services available at the Hyden LKLP office.

LKLP delivers WIA programs in Leslie, Knott, Letcher and Perry counties under contract with EKCEP. The LKLP offices in those counties are also an access point for the JobSight network, a collaborative partnership of workforce and training agencies administered by EKCEP in 23 eastern Kentucky counties.

The couple met with Shirley Morgan, a WIA career adviser at LKLP. Shirley told them WIA could help pay the transportation costs that were becoming such a burden and help pay for expensive exams needed to become a nurse.

Shirley also offered moral support and helped them access some of the other services and financial assistance available through the JobSight network. With the financial pressure reduced, David was able to finish his RN degree and Marta was able to start her LPN studies.

Shirley said she is proud of how determined David and Marta have been to improve their situation.

“They kept trying no matter what obstacles were in their way,” she said.

David said all the effort was worth it. It has given him a sense of pride and allowed him to provide for the family he and Marta have always wanted. He encourages others to get in touch with their local WIA career advisers and see how they can better themselves.

“You feel like you’ve accomplished something when you see that diploma on the wall. It makes you feel pretty good,” David said.

For more information about WIA services in your area, call 672-2155. Or visit www.ekcep.org or www.facebook.com/ekcep.