From Sudan to the Basin

Job Corps graduate from Africa shares his story of success, determination

MOSES LAKE — For David Bol, a recent graduate of the Columbia Basin Job Corps, the move from his hometown in Perieng, Sudan, and eventually to Moses Lake, has been a journey of mind over matter.

After moving to Ethiopia in 1987 and then to Kenya in 1992 where he lived in refugee camps, Bol first came to the United States in 2001 to escape the outbreaks of civil war and unrest so common in his native homeland.

And three years later his determination and hard work have paid off.

"Obstacles don't exist and if I want something, I do it," Bol said of the challenge of leaving his family and starting a new life here in the U.S. "I wanted to get a good paying job and basic skills."

So last year Bol moved from Seattle to Moses Lake, where he began taking basic computer, business and pharmacy technician courses at the CBJC where he graduated in July at the top of his class.

"He knows what he has to do in life to succeed," said Michele Stanhope, a pharmacy technician instructor at the CBJC who taught Bol in his studies there.

After graduating in July, Bol returned to Seattle, but it wouldn't be long until a job opportunity in Moses Lake brought him back to the Columbia Basin.

"I've been here only a few days," Bol said last week of his return to Moses Lake where he now works as a pharmacy technician at the Moses Lake Professional Pharmacy, delivering and filling prescriptions.

At his new job, Bol says he enjoys staying busy and being in a place "where I can broaden my skills. This is a profession that can lead to something," he added.

"David has the best work ethic of anyone I've seen," said Shawn Needham, a nutritional supplements expert at the Moses Lake Professional Pharmacy. "He is reliable and he can do what's asked of him."

Looking to the future, Bol said he hopes to pursue a career in medicine and one day return to Africa.

"It doesn't make sense for me to get my degree here and not go back to my country where they need the help of people who have the skills to fight epidemics like AIDS," he said. "Education is a tool that can be used to create understanding and links with people across different cultures."

The message Bol has for other students at Job Corps is this: "Decide what you want to do and go towards that and give it all your attention."