Dutch Moedt, 20, started looking for work almost a year ago, handing out a total of 32 resumes to potential employers in Lethbridge.
Two of those companies, Tim Hortons and the Enmax Centre, called him back and put him to work.
Moedt, who lives with Down syndrome, couldn’t be more thrilled.
“I’m so happy,” he said. “My job (is) to scan your tickets, scan all the people here, a hundred fans of (the) Lethbridge Hurricanes. People are happy.”
His mother says she’s very proud.
“When he was a baby, I always hoped he would grow up to be independent and now I see it in him,” Rebeka Moedt said.
She’s hoping that sharing Dutch’s story will encourage other employers to consider hiring people with disabilities.
According to Statistics Canada, 12 per cent of Canadians living with a disability reported having been refused a job because of their condition in 2011.
READ MORE: Lethbridge man living with disability: ‘I want to work with customers’
“Give them a chance, if it doesn’t work, that is OK,” Rebeka said. “Failure happens to everybody.”
Dutch works part-time at Tim Hortons and a few times a month at the Enmax Centre.
He’s already made friends with his co-workers and has gotten a hang of both positions.
“I like my job,” Dutch said.