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Face in the crowd: Dawn Allen stands with the baseball all-stars mural that she painted for the Strike Zone. Related articles | A14: ‘We have to let you go’ and ‘Looking for work’.
Photo by Mandy Ferguson |
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Joblessness is hard work
Allen uses talent to supplement lost income
Jim Fair
Editor
A graphic designer who recently lost her job hoped references like Shaquille O'Neal, Mark O'Meara, Tigers Woods' mother and the late Payne Stewart would help open doors during a job search. But so far they haven't. Not in this economy.
Dawn Allen worked for Milliken and Co. before being laid off recently.
"I was there nine years and ended up with $1,000," Dawn said. Milliken gave employees a severance package of two weeks pay per year employed. The severance package was taxed at more than 32 percent. Insurance and other benefits ceased. Dawn said she is waiting to see what happens with her 401k.
"Nobody came by to pat me on the back and offer support. The only people who received outplacement service was management," Dawn said.
Dawn had shoulder surgery and returned to work while recovering. "They (Milliken staff) said they waited a month to tell me I was being let go because they felt bad for me," Dawn said.
The most onerous part for Dawn was how to tell her family - her husband Michael and two children Devin and McKenna - she was out of a job. "It was very, very difficult for me," Dawn said.
There was a sense of dread. I doubted myself and for a few days I didn't want to do anything. Then I decided to first focus on what I can do ... but do something and go with the flow."
Michael explained that Dawn shouldn't blame herself. He reasoned that layoffs were happening all across the country.
But the thing that tugged at Dawn's heart strings the most was when her son, Devin, a baseball player at Riverside High School, recognized the immediate loss of family income and made some decisions to ease the burden on the family.
"I had promised Devin that he would get a new bat this year if he made the (Riverside) baseball team. He came home and said, 'Mom, I don't need a new bat this year.'"
Riverside has a traveling baseball team and Dawn had anticipated the $1,000 cost by putting the money aside before she was out of work. "I asked Devin about the traveling team and when we would have to pay. He said, 'Mom, I didn't sign up for the team. We can use the money better for groceries or other things.' I told him that money was put aside before all this happened."
Dawn has been trying to supplement some of the lost income by falling back on the skills she learned at Ringling College of Design and by contracting with Walt Disney World, professional golfers and basketball players in the Orlando, Fla., area to paint murals at their homes.
There have been sacrifices. "I now cook for the week instead of cooking each night," Dawn said. "We've definitely cut out vacations and we've condensed our bills."
Dawn said she's been shopping around her murals for some extra money. "I want to get back to doing murals and illustrating story books," Dawn said. She recently contracted to paint murals at First Presbyterian Church in Greenville and at the Strike Zone in Greer. Dawn has illustrated books, animals and greeting cards.
"I'm not bitter," Dawn said. "I'm past that. I see so many other people without jobs. I have a very good support group with my family."
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