Social Responsibility

Resilient Stories from our Prosperity Hub Program: Meet Sandra

Sandra knows what rock bottom feels like — and she knows what it’s like to go from there to living out her dreams. Born and raised in Morristown, Tennessee, many people that Sandra knew dropped out of high school to raise a family or support their family. There was even a time when Sandra was

Written by Intuit Blog team
Modified Jul 21, 2021
2 min read

Sandra knows what rock bottom feels like — and she knows what it’s like to go from there to living out her dreams.

Born and raised in Morristown, Tennessee, many people that Sandra knew dropped out of high school to raise a family or support their family. There was even a time when Sandra was homeless and didn’t believe in herself or see the potential for a future.

When Sandra was 25 years old, her life started to change. It took courage, as well as encouragement from her wife, to apply for a customer care position with Sykes, one of Intuit’s partners. When you’re down on your luck, self-confidence can take a beating — but Sandra applied and was thrilled to be offered a position as a customer care agent supporting Intuit customers.

Fast-forward three years and Sandra’s life has transformed. Today, she’s a training manager leading a team and fulfilling a dream of supporting other people in their development, while continuing to grow her own skills. “I feel that I make a difference every day that I go to work,” she says. She has also become the first woman in her family to graduate high school.

Launched in 2016, our Prosperity Hub program helps communities in need by creating jobs, preparing people for jobs of the future, and equipping entrepreneurs to start and build successful businesses. Our eight existing Prosperity Hubs have created more than 2,300 customer support jobs, and generated at least $123 million in economic activity.

Our Prosperity Hub program – physical and virtual call centers, small business success centers, and educational institutions help make a difference for individuals and spark economic growth and resiliency for communities. Our partners, including Skyes, Alorica, Concentrix and Sitel, support us to help create well-paying jobs that help assist Intuit customers. About one-third of the jobs are permanently virtual and designed for people in military communities, who must often relocate, and people with varying abilities.

For someone who never expected to go far, Sandra has come a long way and is living her dreams. She’s proud of herself for overcoming all the obstacles in her way. But it’s the changes on the inside that are some of the most powerful. “I have hope not only in my future but the future of other people as well,” she says. “We are resilient, we are capable of doing anything we set our mind to as human beings.”