Monday, June 23, 2003
Unemployment was crushing, but the former private prison worker is bouncing back.
By DON SHILLING
VINDICATOR BUSINESS EDITOR
GIRARD -- Talk about culture shock.
When Nick Cellio lost his job at a private prison in Youngstown, he went from safety manager to diaper manager.
A perfectionist and schedule-keeper, Cellio loved his job at the Corrections Corporation of America prison. He made sure the kitchen was safe, maintenance was done properly and emergency plans were in place.
Unemployed and at home with three preschoolers, however, schedules and neatness became a thing of the past. Diapers needed to be changed at inopportune times and naps and bedtime didn't always go as planned.
The Girard resident enjoyed the time with his children but wished he had the money to do something besides play in the back yard or go to the park.
"It was overwhelming. I was almost panicked over how we were going to pay the bills," said Cellio, whose wife, Jenn, is a hairstylist.
But going on unemployment was the hardest decision of all.
"I was like, arrrrrgh. I never saw myself doing that. I always saw myself as a go-getter, and there was nothing to go get," he said.
That was two years ago.
Resurrection
Now, Cellio, 30, is back to work. In fact, he has two jobs and sometimes three, and he loves it.
"I want to know my family is secure and that they aren't needing things they should have," he said.
He's thriving again because of his determination and a helping hand from the Mahoning & amp; Columbiana Training Association.
His new career is real estate. He is an agent at Reliable Real Estate in McKinley Heights after earning his real estate license last year.
He also has been working full time since March at Best Buy, where he is a security officer who watches for shoplifters. He also has done the same work at Kaufmann's in Niles when needed.
He likes being back to a schedule. He gets up at 6:30 a.m. and by 7 a.m. he's on the computer checking for houses with sale listings that have expired. He also prints fliers to mail.
He then spends some time with his children and leaves for Best Buy at 8:45 a.m. He works until between 2:30 p.m. and 5 p.m., depending on his shift, then is back working on real estate, showing homes and making phone calls.
Easier said than done
It's been tough building a business, he said, adding that many people tell him real estate must be a great career because you can set your own hours and the work seems easy.
He's found out, however, that he needs to be aggressive to keep track of listed homes that aren't selling, market himself by sending fliers and make cold calls. He's available at all hours, including weekends, to show houses.
"If you expect to make it in real estate, you have to work," he said.
He credits the training association with helping him to redirect his career. In addition to advice and support, the MCTA used federal funds for his training, supplies and fees.
He chose real estate training, despite his security experience. The prison hired him as a guard in 1997, and he was promoted to safety manager. His previous experience included theft monitoring at Kmart in Liberty before that store closed and corrections officer training.
He said he chose his new career because he likes working with people and he thought real estate would be a nice side job if CCA reopens the prison that it closed in 2001.
"My wife will kill me for saying this," he said as he paused to think about that possibility. But he would like to get his old job back, keep selling real estate and continue at Best Buy part time.
Cellio likes to keep a lot of options open. He knows the unexpected can happen. Besides the Kmart, Kaufmann's and CCA jobs, he also has lost a security job at Phar-Mor and a production job at the former Easco in Girard.
Except for the brief frustration when he lost his job at CCA, Cellio has remained upbeat.
"The best thing is to hold on tight and ride the ride that life throws at you," he said.
shilling@vindy.com