STORIES OF HOPE & TRANSFORMATION WINTER 2025
MARGARET MOTEN
Henna Award for Good
Page 4
A GOOD NIGHT FOR GOODWILL
2025 HALL OF HONOR
Our 2025 Hall of Honor awardees are remarkable individuals who embody Goodwill's mission. Their stories of leadership, determination, and resilience represent the many people we are honored to work with and learn from each year.
Margaret Moten
HENNA AWARD FOR GOOD
This year’s Henna Award for Good honoree Margaret Moten is a leader whose influence touches every corner of the Goodwill Central Texas mission. A board member for nine years—three as Chair—she helped steer the organization through challenge and change with steadiness, wisdom, and heart.
Her connection is deeply personal. “My daughter was the first Moten to join the Goodwill family. She provided skills training and job placement services to women escaping domestic violence. Until then, I shared the common misconception that Goodwill begins and ends with the stores. The stores are vital, but Goodwill is so much more,” said Margaret.
Since moving to Texas in 2014, Margaret has devoted her time, talent, and passion to expanding opportunity across Central Texas, impacting countless lives. Inspired by her first Goodwill fundraising event that year, Margaret and her husband Mat toured the Goodwill Excel Center adult high school and the recycling center. This experience deepened her commitment to Goodwill’s mission of transforming lives through the power of education and work.
During her board tenure, Margaret embraced an audacious vision: to transform 100,000 lives. What began as an aspirational goal in the beginning became a reality through collective effort. “Goodwill accomplished [that goal] and more, achieving transformational change,” she reflected.
We are honored to celebrate Margaret’s extraordinary dedication, vision, and service—and the spirit of generosity the Henna Award for Good recognizes each year. As our CEO Rob Neville shared “Margaret, your loyalty, leadership, and advocacy have left a lasting mark on Goodwill.”
Iman Hassen
STUDENT OF THE YEAR
“I am from Ethiopia. I came to the United States in 2013 and I have five kids.” With that simple introduction, Iman Hassen begins a story of grit, growth, and generational change.
When she first arrived, everyday conversations were difficult. Then Iman found Goodwill, where she discovered she could take English as a Second Language (ESL) classes, earn her high school diploma, and enroll her children in the on-site early learning program at the Goodwill Exploration Center—removing the biggest barrier she faced: childcare.
Iman enrolled in the Goodwill Excel Center adult high school in 2017. Her journey wasn’t linear. During her time in school, she expanded her family with another baby and later twins, stepping away briefly to care for them before returning in 2023 with renewed determination. With three of her children learning and thriving at the Exploration Center, Iman built confidence and communications skills, completed her coursework, and graduated in Spring 2025 with her diploma and certifications in Patient Care Technician and phlebotomy.
Iman credits the early learning program as essential to her success. Sharon Evans, Senior Director of Early Childhood and Family Support Services, explains that balancing school and parenting is one of the biggest challenges adult learners face. “Access to a high-quality early learning program—especially a Texas Rising Star four-star program—is very rare. Because Iman was an Excel student with us, she qualified for a scholarship and didn't have to pay out of pocket for childcare.”
“Now I can change my life… I can converse with people. I can go to work.” Next, she plans to pursue a nursing degree and show her children what’s possible when determination meets opportunity. Scan the QR code or visit bit.ly/imanhassen to hear more about Iman's story.
2025 HALL OF HONOR
2025 HALL OF HONOR
Jocelyn Rodriguez & Erik Zuniga
OUTSTANDING YOUTH
This year’s Hall of Honor Outstanding Youth award winners are two Project SEARCH participants: Jocelyn Rodriguez and Erik Zuniga. Project SEARCH helps young adults with developmental disabilities build confidence, workplace skills, and a path to employment— in collaboration with partners like Goodwill Central Texas, the Texas Workforce Commission, and Ascension Seton. About the program, Erin Kingsbury, VP of Goodwill Central Texas Workforce Advancement said, “The partnership with Project SEARCH started many years ago and we saw such a great community opportunity to bring together not only employers but opportunities for students with disabilities.”
Wendy Stocker, Transition Specialist, Liberty Hill ISD, echoed these sentiments, saying, “The combination of services between Texas Workforce Commission, Goodwill, and Ascension Seton provides something that not too many programs can [offer]. It's so nice to have a program that highlights the fact that anyone can do anything with the right training and support.”
For Jocelyn Rodriguez, that support was lifechanging. She entered the program shy and unsure, worried she wouldn’t fit in. But she quickly discovered just how much she was capable of. According to Jocelyn, “Everything changed. [Project SEARCH] changed my life.”
She learned patient-care skills—from blood pressure checks to safe transfers—and discovered she loved the work.
Erik Zuniga found a sense of belonging on a hospital transport team: “I help people go to X-ray, MRI, or CT. It’s fun!”
He discovered his gift for calming nervous patients, “I love helping… I love [to] communicate with other people,” Erik said. He also worked on speaking up and managing a stutter with coaching and practice.
His mother, Iris Dominguez beamed, “He is developing and becoming his own person… I am so proud of him.”
Two journeys, one message: with opportunity and support, talent shines. As Patrick Paver, Hospital Administrator, Ascension Seton Northwest and Southwest said, “This program is about growing our community and giving individuals the opportunity to learn these life skills so that they can go out and be productive.”
Scan the QR code or visit bit.ly/2025outstandingyouth to hear more about Jocelyn and Erik's stories.
Rhiannon Zarate
ACHIEVER OF THE YEAR
When Rhiannon walked into a Goodwill Career Center in Georgetown, she wasn’t just looking for a job—she was building a new life for her family and a future where “home” would never be uncertain again.
A single mom who had left an unsafe relationship, Rhiannon spent 21 tough days homeless with her kids, doing everything she could to make it feel like an adventure instead of a crisis. With her career case manager, Sandra, she mapped a path forward—resume building, credit classes, mock interviews, then GCTA’s Apartment Leasing program. When they discussed her goals, Rhiannon was clear: she didn’t just want to pay rent—she wanted to own the building. “If I’m paying $1,500 in rent,” she thought, “someone else should be paying me $1,500.”
“Okay… let’s do it,” Sandra said. Rhiannon juggled 12-hour shifts on a production line, devoted her off-hours to the leasing class, biked across town to meet with Sandra—on a bike Goodwill provided after she sold her car to make ends meet. She kept saying “yes” to the next hard step.
Her training paid off. After participating in our Certified Leasing Professional and Workforce Advancement programs, Rhiannon aced a phone interview, met with the VP, and toured a property—landing her first leasing role. Within just six months, she was promoted to Assistant Property Manager. Classes like Fair Housing and professionalism training from Goodwill helped her navigate complex resident issues with confidence and care: “I like my job… I like where it’s headed and I like what it is doing for me.”
Today, Rhiannon is repairing her credit and saving for her dream fourplex—a first step toward a home where each of her four children will always have a place to come home. Her gratitude shines through: “I wouldn’t be in this position without Goodwill.” To every donor, shopper, and partner who makes Goodwill possible, she says, “Thank you. It may not happen overnight… but I was that one.”
Scan the QR code or visit bit.ly/rhiannonzarate to hear more about Rhiannon's story.
2025 HALL OF HONOR
IMPACT
*as of November 2025
At this year’s A Good Night for Goodwill, we raised an incredible $240,000 for our Bridge Fund, with special thanks to UFCU for a generous $25,000 lead gift.
Fueled by community donations and event proceeds, the fund provides emergency assistance to students and program participants who need help with basic needs and sudden, unavoidable expenses.
Because of you, the Bridge Fund turns moments of crisis into stepping stones toward success—supporting students, clients, and team members to stay in school, training programs, and jobs.
671
individuals and families supported!
91
people received assistance with car payments
20
people received uniforms or attire for work
5
people received certifications or documentation for work
274
households received housing support
*including rental and mortgage assistance
75
households supported with groceries or other household needs
144
households received utility support
*including internet and phone
35
people received work tools or business supplies
*including computers
6
people received medical expense support
5
3 households received essential appliance rental support
people received bicycles for transportation to work
2
families received childcare support
Good Looks Fashion Show
A Good Night for Goodwill hosted the Good Looks fashion show where 10 talented designers and 40 amazing models took the stage in sustainably sourced designs and styled outfits. All materials and clothing came from Goodwill stores and outlets, demonstrating how second-hand materials can made first class fashion.
Our gratitude to Looking Friday, Delaney Gibson Moon, i3Essential, Elly Abels Designs, Custom By Melanie, Honey Fatale, B. Eclectic, Treasures Redeemed, and Sarah Teresinski.
WELCOMING Tamara Atkinson TO GOODWILL CENTRAL TEXAS
We’re delighted to share a milestone for Goodwill Central Texas: Tamara Atkinson has joined our team as President of Workforce Advancement Strategy. A nationally recognized workforce leader and former CEO of Workforce Solutions Capital Area, Tamara brings 25 years of experience aligning education, training, and employment so Central Texans can step into quality, future-ready careers.
Tamara will guide our workforce strategy—expanding access to programs, strengthening employer partnerships, and building pathways that help people move from learning to work. As our CEO emphasized, "Her proven leadership in workforce development combined with her heart for the community will supercharge our ability to transform lives. With Tamara at the helm of our workforce strategy, we're not only doubling down on our mission, we're accelerating our vision.”
Most importantly for the Good People community, Tamara’s leadership advances the impact you make possible. Your generosity fuels the learning environments, coaching, credentials, and supports that change lives. With Tamara serving as President of Workforce Advancement Strategy, we’ll translate that support into even more placements, promotions, and family-sustaining wages.
Please join us in welcoming Tamara to Goodwill Central Texas, and in celebrating the next chapter of mission growth your support is helping to write.
Workforce Advancement: PATHWAYS THAT CHANGE LIVES
At Goodwill Central Texas, Workforce Advancement connects Central Texans to free training, career coaching, and job opportunities that build lasting independence. Through personalized guidance, participants gain the confidence, skills, and support they need to move from entry-level work to thriving careers. From digital literacy to industry certifications, every service is designed to meet people where they are and help them take their next step. With your support, Workforce Advancement opens doors to brighter futures—empowering individuals to learn, earn, and grow right here in our community.
