Jaime | Helping Employees Build Careers

Second-generation Goodwill Great Lakes Leader Recognized as Manager of the Year

“Goodwill is a great place to work where you get a lot of support and can advance to different positions.” 

Jaime is a second-generation Goodwill employee. Following in his father’s footsteps, the two worked together for several years in food service at Goodwill Great Lakes. 

At Goodwill Great Lakes, employees like Jaime create a home away from home for Sailors and Recruits at the U.S. Navy’s only bootcamp, Naval Station Great Lakes, in Great Lakes, Illinois. Since 1998, Goodwill has provided food and postal services, uniform distribution, warehousing and shuttle transportation on the base. 

A Legacy to Leadership

Jaime has served Sailors and Recruits since the beginning of Goodwill’s partnership with the Navy, advancing into several roles along the way. He started as a food service worker ensuring the kitchen was equipped with clean cookware for meal service, moved to preparing meals for Sailors and Recruits as a cook and grew into a food service supervisor role where he could apply his gained leadership skills.

Today, Jaime serves as a food service manager where he has an important role in helping Goodwill serve millions of meals a year. He is responsible for overseeing a kitchen operation of nearly 60 crew that feed over 1,000 Recruits each meal. Jaime also manages the daily food order for nearly 10,000 individuals and sets the standard for an exceptional environment. 

“Goodwill helped me grow my professional career. I love working [here]. It’s my second family. I have met so many wonderful people,” shares Jaime about his over two-decade journey working for Goodwill on the base.

Paying it Forward

Jaime takes pride in providing the same mentorship that helped him advance. “I like to help my employees the same way my supervisors and managers helped me.” For Jaime, the most meaningful part of his role is “seeing employees learn new skills and get promoted to different positions.” Jaime’s dedication to his work and the people he leads is well recognized as he is a recipient of the Manager of the Year Award.

About Goodwill Great Lakes 

Goodwill Great Lakes employees, which include veterans and civilians, can be found serving with honor on the base 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.