Joomla Login LightBox powered by WowJoomla.com

When siblings Natalie and Vincent Dattilio found it difficult to find summer jobs, they decided to get creative and hire themselves out.

Natalie and her friend Kaitlyn Mueller, both 16, printed up posters and offered their services as pet sitters for people on vacation or away from home.

They have their first assignment this week taking care of a dog and a cat.

Vincent, who is 18 and just graduated from Kearney High School, is working for a neighbor doing odd jobs. He plans to attend Metropolitan Community College-Maple Woods in the fall.

“I applied to 30 different places and only had one interview,” Vincent said.

“The grocery store told him to come back in August,” his mother, Kay Dattilio, said.

Kay said she is teaching her daughter to drive, which will help her get to jobs. The brother and sister do have winter jobs at Snow Creek, where Natalie will teach skiing and Vincent teaches snowboarding.

Vincent said his plans are to study business management in college and eventually to own his own business.

Lisa Essig, who owns six McDonald’s restaurants in the area, including one each in Kearney, Claycomo and Excelsior Springs and three in Liberty, said they have plenty of applicants looking for work.

“We get a lot of applications; especially this last year there’s been an increase,” Essig said.

In recent years, Essig said, the work force has trended older with the average age of a McDonald’s employee running about 26 to 27. She estimated that the teenage work force is approximately 30 to 40 percent of her employees. Two employees in Liberty have worked for her family for 25 years.

“We really look for people who can work all year-round,” Essig said. “We have a few shifts that we have a little more trouble filling. And some people have transportation issues and need a job close to where they live.”

Some governmental entities are benefiting from the tight job market. Liberty, for example, is taking advantage of a state jobs program by hiring three summer interns for eight weeks at no cost to the city. Facing dwindling revenues and a freeze on hiring, the city jumped at the opportunity, said Tony Sage, Information Services director.

According to Sage, the Missouri Next-Generation Jobs Team connects 16- to 24-year-olds with job. The interns gain valuable work experience and are paid through the federal recovery act, he said.

“We benefit from talented, motivated young workers who are filling three much-needed positions that would otherwise been left vacant,” Sage said in a press release.

Joseph Washington, 18, of North Kansas City is working for Sage providing computer trouble-shooting and support to city staff.

Kaneisha Harris, 17, of Liberty is working as a receptionist at the front window. She assists callers and walk-ins to find the information and city services they seek.

Sunny Franks, 22 of Parkville is working in the public relations office helping with the city’s newsletter, Web site, press releases and working to expand programming on Cable Channel 2.

Harris said she is still looking for a job, but she’s enjoying working as a temporary receptionist.

Franks, who graduated this spring from the University of Missouri-Columbia, hopes to land a job in public relations or television.

“I know that market’s tough, and there’s not a lot out there,” Franks said.

Franks said, though, she was optimistic that she would find a position suited to her skills in television production and mass communications. She said she is willing to relocate.

Liberty Editor Angie Anaya Borgedalen can be reached at 781-4941 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Comments (1)

Subscribe to this comment's feed

i say that...
written by Marion D, February 06, 2010

I say that it’s not only during summer but the whole year round. I don’t need to say it but unemployment is really horrible. That’s why in order to bring home a little money, many I know have come up to freelancing in whatever capacity they had to raise their living, somehow. It is hard but you have to survive it.

• 
• +0
• 
•