BECKLEY, WV (LOOTPRESS) – The Beckley-Raleigh County Chamber of Commerce welcomed Raleigh County residents to the 2023 Job & Resource Fair on Friday at the Beckley-Raleigh County Convention Center.
The event, sponsored by New River Community and Technical College and held in conjunction with partners Goodwill Industries of Kanawha Valley, Workforce West Virginia, and the Office of U.S. Senator Joe Manchin, presented a broad array of information and opportunities for those seeking employment, looking for a change of pace, or simply hoping to obtain more information.
Along with New River Community and Technical College, representatives from Concord University, Bluefield State University, and WVU Tech were present at the event to offer information regarding available higher learning opportunities. They were joined by recruiters from the US Air Force, Raleigh County Sheriff’s Department, Raleigh General Hospital, Black Hawk Mining, and Jan Care Ambulance Service, among others.
Multiple local entities including the Raleigh County Commission on Aging, New River Gorge Regional Development Authority, Raleigh County Community Action Association, Beckley Sanitary Board, and AWAY (formerly known as the Women’s Resource Center) were on hand as well to meet with potential candidates for employment.
The Office of United States Senator has been a partner in the development of the Job & Resource Fair, and even stopped by the offices of the Beckley-Raleigh County Chamber of Commerce last month to discuss potential opportunities for Raleigh County residents considering attending the event.
“The bottom line of it is, there are so many jobs that aren’t filled. So if you feel like you don’t have a job that’s challenging enough or rewarding enough, you should come. There are going to be plenty of opportunities.,” said Senator Manchin.
“A lot of times people get to a place where they just don’t know where to go. Sometimes you find that folks don’t know how to fill out a resume, and we can help with that. They [think,] ‘well, I might not be educated well enough for a better job,’ but you’d be surprised at the training – the free training – that’s available; the community & technical schools; all the things that we can help them with. So this is more than just a jobs fair, this is a career builder.”
Beckley-Raleigh County Chamber of Commerce President Michelle Rotellini noted that the aim of the event was to highlight the variety of notable employment opportunities available throughout the Beckley area and beyond, stating,
“There are plenty of great jobs here in West Virginia, everything from jobs surrounding the hospitality industry and trade jobs to professional jobs, so we just really wanted to be able to showcase it. As we hear over and over again, ‘if you can’t see it, you can’t be it,’ so this is really an opportunity for the workforce to come out and see what’s there.”
For more information on available opportunities throughout the Beckley and Raleigh County areas visit the Beckley-Raleigh County Chamber of Commerce website.