With her incredible work ethic, extensive job experience, and magnetic personality, Sammy was destined for success in the workplace. She just needed some guidance to find her dream career, so she was referred to Work Opportunities Unlimited (WOU) for a Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) job placement. Now with support from Tracy Domenici, Career Resource Specialist on WOU’s Blackstone Team, Sammy has the perfect new career!
Sammy began working with Tracy in September of 2024. Tracy shares, “From the moment I met Sammy, I knew she would do great things with the right direction. She strongly desired to find a career, not just a job, where she could learn and grow.” Sammy’s job experience was wide-ranging, including serving in restaurants, working at a kickboxing studio, and several years’ employment in the mental health field after getting her BS in Psychology at Worcester State in 2019. She was open to a variety of new roles, like event planning and sales, and also had a passion for fitness. Tracy, who dedicates her days to breaking down barriers to employment for people with disabilities, says, “I helped Sammy identify her biggest strengths and determine what her main work values would be. Then we got to work on searching for jobs that fit within those parameters.” Tracy also helped her prepare for interviews, refining responses so the very friendly and personable Sammy communicated succinctly. Sammy applied to several different positions, including roles in human resources, at a home remodeling company, and at a mortgage company.
Then Tracy found an exciting opportunity at a company called StretchMed, whose certified therapists provide one-on-one stretching sessions to help their clients increase mobility and alleviate chronic pain. The company was looking for a studio manager for their upcoming first location in Rhode Island. Tracy says, “I thought that Sammy could easily market herself for this opportunity, even without longevity in the fitness industry.” Sammy participated in an initial screening interview at StretchMed, followed by a virtual group interview with some other candidates. After the group interview, Sammy felt discouraged; all the other candidates either had a background in fitness with certifications or were already working for the StretchMed company. “I reminded Sammy of her many other strong attributes and encouraged her not to count herself out yet,” says Tracy, whose instincts were correct – the franchise owner of the new studio, Jakari, offered Sammy the studio manager position! Jakari shares, “Sammy stood out to me because of her can-do spirit, positive attitude, as well as her easy disposition and conscientiousness.” He remarks that Sammy also displayed “curiosity, a genuine desire to grow and learn, and a commitment to self-development. In other words, Sammy showed ownership from day one and it’s one of the rarest qualities to find, and the number one reason she was selected.”
Sammy was thrilled to begin her new role – after all, it included her loves of fitness and working with people, and would allow her to use her natural gift for sales – but now she had some challenging goals to meet. She needed to complete two different certification courses within her first 90 days of employment, assist with hiring and training staff, and prepare the studio for its opening day. Tracy supported Sammy through the onboarding process and then checked in with her weekly to be sure that she stayed organized with her studio tasks and certification coursework. Sammy successfully completed both the personal trainer certification and the StretchMed stretch therapist certification, which came with a nice perk of a trip to Puerto Rico to train at their main headquarters, before her 60th day of employment! Once the studio opened in mid-March of 2025, Sammy was tasked with growing her team. Tracy served as a consultant for Sammy as she developed effective interview questions, narrowed down candidates, and brainstormed training techniques and methods to build rapport and enhance employee engagement.
Each day, Sammy provides assisted stretching for clients and sells them membership packages tailored to their fitness needs and discomfort complaints. She develops community connections to get more referrals, like reaching out to the local Chamber of Commerce and creating a relationship with the physical therapy office right across the street. By the end of March, the new studio was in the top five for sales for the month and continued to be a top performer in April, with a high majority of those sales being ones that Sammy closed herself! Tracy isn’t surprised, given Sammy’s ethos of giving 110% each day, as well as her extreme likeability. “I’ve described her as having an infectious personality,” says Tracy. “She is the type of person you hear chatting with someone across the room and just want to meet her… This job is the perfect mix for Sammy to play into all of her strengths.”
When Sammy first started working with Tracy, she felt uncertain of her future. Now she has a full career and two new certifications, plus an ideal environment to thrive, thanks to Jakari’s leadership as well as the support of StretchMed’s corporate teams. “Jakari has been an amazing supervisor for Sammy,” says Tracy. “She credits Jakari for letting her figure things out for herself but also stepping in when needed. He makes a point to note that she is in charge of how the studio runs. Corporate and Jakari have recognized her fantastic efforts in this role and have told her that she has growth opportunities in the future.” In fact, Jakari has stated his intention to open more studios in the future; when he needs a district manager, Sammy would be in the running. Tracy shares, “Sammy says that she is in a job that she feels good about and is proud of how far she has come.” Congratulations, Sammy!
