Rico Sanchez: June Employee of the Month

The June Employee of the Month is Rico Sanchez. Rico is a recent graduate of Apollo Career Center and the Project SEARCH program. Project SEARCH is a high school transition program through Apollo that takes place entirely at Mercy Health/St. Rita’s Medical Center. The internships allow participants to explore jobs they might not have been aware of and gain employment and social skills to prepare for the workforce. As with many teens, Rico has explored his options to determine his path to employment. While in school, Rico started working at Westgate Entertainment Center. Rico was hired after completing an assessment in the Summer Youth program Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities (OOD). He has now been employed at Westgate for two years. This job has allowed him to use his strengths of being reliable and great at interacting with others.

Rico continued to explore employment during his time at Mercy Health through Project SEARCH. His internship, as well as his experience at Apollo, led to his current position in the kitchen at Mercy Health, which he started in February. Rico's supervisor, Ross, shared that he is a great worker!

Rico is constantly seeking out new opportunities, and while showcasing his internship at a disability awareness event in March, he was able to connect with the executive director of the ARC of Allen County. Having attended Camp Robin Rogers in the past, Rico discussed plans of potentially becoming a counselor for the camp in the future. Rico has considered counseling as a long-term goal, so this would be a nice stepping stone for him.

Rico speaking with the executive director of The ARC.

Rico continues to keep his options open, considering attending college to one day work as an outpatient physical therapist or in pediatric rehabilitation. He has shared that he could motivate his patients by sharing his own childhood experiences. As if he wasn't busy enough, Rico finds the time to volunteer in Patient Relations at Mercy Health as well. Rico is a very motivated young man and loves being involved in the community and at work.

While Rico explores his future, his current employers enjoy having him as part of their teams. We know that whatever Rico's future holds, he has the motivation and determination to be successful. Congratulations, Rico!