Statement of Amy Gilliland, Participant,
Ticket to Work Program, Glendale, Arizona

Testimony Before the Subcommittee on Social Security
of the House Committee on Ways and Means

Hearing on Fourth in a Series on Social Security Disability Programs' Challenges and Opportunities

September 26, 2002

Mr. Chairman, Members of the Committee, my name is Amy Gilliland and I am a participant in the Ticket to Work Program.  Thank you for inviting me to be with you today.  I am 22 years old and am a SSDI beneficiary due to a psychiatric disability.  I also have a long history of drug and alcohol abuse, and I am proud to say that on September 5 of this year I celebrated four years of sobriety.

It is safe to say that I have led a rocky life, one complicated by my psychiatric disability.  Earlier this year I received the Ticket to Work in the mail.  I saw the Ticket as a great opportunity to change my life – to realize my aspirations to become somebody.  I don’t want to sit around doing nothing.  I don’t want to suck the system dry.  Until I received the Ticket I really didn’t think I had much chance to get the help I needed to go to work and become self-supporting again.

I called a few of the Employment Networks on the list that was sent to me.  None called me back except ABIL.  They were very encouraging.  I liked the fact that there were people willing to spend the time with me to explore my options.  We talked about what I wanted to do and how I might get there.  We really went into depth.  We explored my interests mentally and socially as well as professionally.  I chose to deposit my Ticket with ABIL and they accepted.

Unfortunately, I was still having a lot of trouble with my mental illness.  I really wasn’t ready.  I have training as a Certified Nursing Assistant so initially I told ABIL I wanted to go in that direction. I guess I felt obligated to use that training since I worked so hard to get it.  ABIL was very helpful in continuing to call me with different job opportunities in that field. 

After several months of trying to get my health stabilized I realized that I didn’t want to go into nursing.  Lynda at ABIL was very understanding.  She encouraged me to pursue new and different ideas.  She was there when I needed a sounding board.  She told me not to push myself too hard and to be sure I was really ready to work before I did so.  But she kept checking in with me to be sure I was okay.  Each time she was patient and spent the time I needed to feel comfortable with going back to work.  She had a way of pushing me just hard enough so that I wasn’t languishing but not too hard to shove me over the edge.

I’m proud to say that I am now working at Albertson’s as a customer relations representative in their store.  I make $8.65 an hour and feel I can build a career there. Albertson’s is a great employer and offers lots of training to their employees so we can move ahead and make really good money.  My prescription drugs are still supplied by Value Options, a public mental health program in Arizona.  Eventually, I will receive full benefits from Alberston’s.  I plan to stay in the grocery business but I also want to get my Bachelor’s degree and maybe even a Master’s degree someday.  I even have a dream to publish a series of children’s books.

But because of the Ticket to Work Program I know that if I lose my job tomorrow, Lynda will be there to help me find something else.  I really love the Trial Work Period.  You need the most help when you’re just starting out.  And to keep my benefits for a full year while I increase and stabilize my earnings potential is just great!

Thank you for the Ticket to Work Program.  This Program will not only help me be successful but many others just like me.  And thanks for inviting me here today for my very first visit ever to Washington, D.C.