Let’s take a moment to celebrate one of our own.
Linda Vailati, Romney Store manager, has been employed with Goodwill since August 2010 as a sales associate. She was promoted to store manager in August 2017.
Linda was born and raised in New Jersey. During her teen years, her family moved to Mechanicsville, MD. She then relocated to Romney, WV in 2008.
When asked about hobbies, Linda said, “family is everything to me.” After experiencing the loss of her youngest son, Daniel, who passed last October at age 32, Linda knows how precious life can be. She takes every opportunity to spend with her other two sons Ronnie and Justin, and their families. It’s hard to imagine, but Linda is a grandmother of 4 and great grandmother of 1 (with another great grandbaby due any day).
Because of Linda’s love for animals, it was only natural that she take in Danny’s rescue animals when he passed. His dog, Blacky, a wild haired Terrier, and cats, Pizza and Pepperoni, keep her very busy when she is not working. When she has time, Linda also enjoys tinkering in the garden and canoeing.
Linda enjoys Goodwill because of the employees and customers. Because her family is so far away, her employees are like an extended family. When asked about Goodwill life, Linda said:
“Goodwill gives me the opportunity to help others by hiring those that can’t find jobs elsewhere. Jobs are far and few between. Many applicants just need a chance. I like to look past the surface and evaluate what attributes a person can bring to Goodwill.
We also have great people here in Romney. Our community goes out of its way to help each other. Often people come in that are down on their luck. Some have had a house fire or were homeless. There have been many circumstances when our customers have overheard another customer talking about their situation and then leave money at the counter to pay for the person’s items. It warms my heart.”
We are excited to celebrate Linda and her continued success.
