The DreamWorker Athlone team celebrates a wonderful World Cup and wonderful results in helping the unemployed!

Bronnie Davidson, Finance and Systems Administrator

Numbers is my game.
They take me into another world. I love the fact that the end result just has to balance.
Whenever I am in that world, I have a sense that I am awaiting something big ……..and I love it when the numbers all add up at the end!

I am passionate about making a difference in peoples’ lives, especially when it comes to unemployment. I feel honoured to be working in an organization that helps people every day – to find work, to improve their work ethic and simply to give hope where little hope remains. And of course I just love it when the numbers look good – the number of days of work we are acquiring for people - of course!!!

Tania Sisam, Office Administrator

Retail is not a place for the faint hearted! Tania Sisam knows the world of retail inside out, having worked for Woolworths for 18 years as both a cashier and a pay point controller. Through her many years of committed service she learned a host of valuable skills, ranging from self discipline, to hygiene, to time keeping and how to meet challenging deadlines every day. But above all, it was her passion for people that came alive working in a retail environment.

As a young girl I was an introvert, but at Woolies, I needed to overcome my fear of being seen. I had to express myself, I had to be open with colleagues and customers and I had to learn to work with people from so many cultures and backgrounds, very different to my own. I soon learned that giving that bit extra makes all the difference – be it a smile or a kind touch…..as we give of ourselves, to God, to man, even to nature, we will receive the same measure that we give.

Tania has made the decision to give of her time and energy to the DreamWorker programme. She is excited to bring all the skills she has learned in retail, to helping others. She is keen to apply her organizational skills and her customer service skills to matching employers and employees. Yes, it is challenging to leave the familiar world of Woolworths. But the joy of waking up knowing she is making a big difference in somebody’s life each day, excites her hugely. And she is looking forward to some quality weekend time with her family for the first time in 18 years!

Zuleigha Bassier, Interviewer and Office Administrator

Zuleigha has spent most of her life in retail. She joined CNA, where she enjoyed 13 years of growth, working her way up to the position of Assistant Manager. In particular, Zuleigha excelled in the areas of Customer Satisfaction and Service Excellence, being highly recognised by her seniors in both areas. Thereafter, she was employed as an administrator, working as a Collection Supervisor for Norman Bisset and Associates. This background in both customer liaison and full time administration positioned Zuleigha perfectly for her role at DreamWorker - as an interviewer as well as a very versatile office administrator!

Zuleigha believes her major contribution to DreamWorker is her unwavering dedication and passion for work. As she puts it:

I love people, talking to them, sharing with all ages and all cultures. It is my interaction with people that has shaped me into the person I am today. I really love working at DreamWorker and dream of the company becoming a national brand in the future. My personal dream, by the grace of the Almighty, is to still be working when I am old and grey, still doing everything to the very best of my ability, still helping others to feel better about themselves, to find value in their lives. I have finally found a job where I am having fun and it is a pleasure to come to work. DreamWorker is a place where I KNOW I can really make a difference in someone else’s life, every single day!

Nzukie Mapaqa, Receptionist and Office Administrator

Nzukie, like so many young people, set out on a course of technology and science, only to find herself drawn to marketing and business instead! While studying marketing at Walter Sisulu University, she was employed as an administration clerk by the organisation, which gave her additional, practical work experience. After graduating, she continued to work in the field of administration.

Nzukie has a warm and inviting smile, a wonderful ability to organise things in the office and a natural affinity to people. It was these qualities that made her a perfect choice for the DreamWorker reception, where people stream in daily, coming to register for work. She says:

My ultimate dream is to become a researcher or consumer behaviour manager. Here at DreamWorker I have the chance every day to be with people, to share with them, to learn from them. The first person they meet when they walk through the door is me and that is a great responsibility. I believe that I must dedicate myself fully to helping people find work through DreamWorker, so that this organisation can grow bigger and bigger. I thank God for the opportunity I have been given to work with so many different people. I have a chance, each and every day, to help another person in some way to feel hope, to feel inspired and to feel cared for.

Chris Plam, Interviewer

Chris describes himself as “a transformed individual who leads my life journey with purpose”. He has been schooled in Responsibility Training, which is a form of Life Coaching. Chris is very grateful to have joined the DreamWorker team as an interviewer. The position has enabled him to be involved in many areas, from administration, to soul searching, inspiration and personal leadership.

Chris is busy studying for his BCom (HRM) and looking to add new skills to his existing counselling skills. He shares:

I am walking in gratitude. My life experiences have shaped me to be a member of the Dream Team. Looking for a job is an immense challenge and it fills my heart to contribute to this process in others, to help people understand who they really are, what they really want and where they really want to be. I look forward to each new day, while still enjoying the now. Inspiring others may not have any big monetary value, but for me, it is the All!

Trilby Krepelka, Systems and Logistics

Trilby brings years of organizational skill to the DreamWorker party, having worked at Fairheads International in the capacity of PA to the Executive Chairman and the Managing Director. She progressed to Trust Administrator, dealing with clients as well as a full range of administrative tasks. More recently, she worked as a preschool Teacher at Prand Play Centre and then as Secretary to the Head of St Cyprians Prep School, before taking the plunge to use her multi tasking and multitalented skills on the DreamWorker programme ....

What I have learned from all the work I have done in my life, be it secretarial, administrative, pre-school teacher or stay at home mom, is that it is essential for me to feel passionate about what I am doing, to work with people who are committed to what they are doing and for us as a team to be making a difference to the community. I am blessed to have found all this in DreamWorker, where I can put my experience to good use, yet stay open to learning new skills every day.

Ronald Bownes, Strategy and Finance

Ronald is a born and bred Capetonian and has lived with and been a part of the diverse cultures that make up our beautiful city all of his life. Having completed a business qualification, he gained experience over the next 10 years across many diverse business disciplines, from strategy to finance, human resources to management. Together with his wife, Tania, he founded and ran an advertising agency for 7 years, before setting his course for management consultancy full time. This led directly to being tasked to project manage a Hout Bay based programme for the unemployed, fuelling a lifelong dream towards social entrepreneurship.

I have a dream that by the year 2020 there will be no unemployment in SA. What this means, quite simply, is that everyone who wants to work, has work. I am passionate about my country and its diverse, resilient people. Work is dignity, work is contribution and yes, work goes a long way to fulfilling dreams. I want to make a significant contribution towards creating a prosperous society and I believe through DreamWorker this is truly possible. Every day, I am humbled to witness the joy and empowerment that employment brings to people.

Tania Bownes, Marketing and Human Resources

Tania worked her way through the ranks of advertising and marketing, before taking the plunge to start up a small agency with her husband, Ronald. She then took another plunge into a whole new range of work, from aromatherapy and reflexology, to teaching the Nia Technique, which she still does part time. She loves diversification and jumped at the opportunity to project manage an employment creation programme in Hout Bay.

I am truly proud of the work achieved in Hout Bay. It was small enough to ‘cut our teeth’ and learn all that was needed to enable us to expand fully into the impoverished areas of the Cape Metropole, with a new programme, DreamWorker. My own dream is to go home every day, knowing that I have found at least one job for one person that day. That one less person will be facing the helpless, hopeless despair that emanates from unemployment.
I have been part of the transition from the dark days of Apartheid to the incredible strength of our nation today. I believe that finding work for people is the most powerful way I can best put my great education, my experience, my love for South Africa and its people, to good work!