They descended on Kent from all over the region with one goal in mind: Finding a job.
Thousands of job-seekers began lining up early May 14 to be the first inside the ShoWare Center to pass out resumes and talk to the more than 70 employers at the KOMO 4 Problem Solvers Job Fair.
Scott Slagle of Orting was in line at 10 a.m. for the 1 p.m. opening. An IT director and vice president for more than 20 years, Slagle said he has been out of work since August.
At ShoWare, he handed out six resumes and had one interview.
“It’s a lot better than sitting at home on the computer,” he said. “After this many months … I’m just getting out and pounding the pavement.
“This is the best job fair I’ve been to since I’ve been unemployed,” he said.
According to Beth Sylves, director of marketing for the ShoWare Center, the line began to form at 8 a.m.
“Initially we had people lined up around one side of the building and down the other,” said Beth.
Though the center planned for up to 5,000 job-seekers, Sylves said judging by the way more people kept showing up to stand in line even after the fair began, that number might be low.
“I imagine we might exceed that today,” she said.
“The turnout is phenomenal,” agreed Bob Throndsen, the managing editor at KOMO, who oversaw the job fair planning.
Throndsen “conservatively” estimated that there were about 1,000 jobs available through the booths that filled the ShoWare Center’s floor and said employers were as anxious to be a part of the show as job-seekers were. State agencies alone have 300 openings, he said.
“We actually had to turn employers away,” he said.
Throndsen said the station wanted to do something after doing many stories on the sad state of the economy.
“It really hits home when you realize these are your friends, your neighbors out looking for work,” he said.
The job fair also featured a stage with speakers offering job search tips as well as a resume help center.
Dawn Hasbrook of Auburn said she has been out of work for about a year and was at the job fair hoping to find something in customer service or photography.
During her time at the arena, she spoke with several employers and was even able to score an interview with one of them.
“So far, so good,” she said before heading back for another pass at the booths.
“Hopefully everyone here gets lucky,” she said.
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