Pleasant Greetings from Sacramento, CA! Like our Pinas, with its new political climate of hopes and dreams, our personal lives experienced God’s beneficial shower of blessings and fulfillment of dreams – towards our destiny! I am excited to share that on the 1st week of July, Sean started his American career as Tax Auditor in one of the top three State Accounting/Auditing function firms.
Jason, Sean and Tom (JST): The amazing journey of three close friends who graduated with BS in Business Administration major in Accountancy from CSUS; The top 3 state firms are: Board of Equalization (BOE - for Sales taxes), Employment Development Department (EDD – for Un/Employment benefits/insurances), and Franchise Tax Board (FTB – for corporate and business taxes). Friends JST are each employed in 1 of these 3 firms. These firms share info/databases relevant to incomes/taxes; thus, each firm is highly sensitive and income-generating for the state. In the recent announcement of furlough days for state employees, the three firms along with 3 others are exempted since they are performing functions critical to the state’s continuous operation.
The Recruitment Process: Most state job applications are done thru the net in State Personnel Board (SPB.gov). Sean started with an entry level job as an Accounting trainee, then later upgraded to higher levels, until he was accepted to range A Tax Auditor position. You go thru a series of tests, submission of documents and interviews. With the current joblessness and economic crisis in America, there are thousands of applicants for very few vacant positions.
During the 3rd/final interview, you are to submit 3 references which the prospective employer actually checks so you have to ask prior permission to list them. Sean is so blessed that he listed Dr. Connie, Deacon Henning and Fr. George, who all gave him very positive feedback as to integrity, diligence, intelligence, competence, etc. They called me to inform about the reference verification; Fr George, who was leaving for his new assignment in Redding the next week, was very confident that Sean was getting the job – his prayers were indeed very powerful! We are so blessed that we are surrounded by very great and supportive people here and thank God for continuously blessing our journey! My prayer is to bless us and allow Sean to fulfill His Will and destiny – but God gives us so much more – we are always grateful and faithful!!!
On our monthly Catholic Lunch Club held on July 16 at the Radisson Hotel, the guest speaker was Mr. Eric Szatkowski, head of Internet Crimes against Children Task Force, who spoke on the topic The Dark Side of Digital Technology. Discussion highlights: The Internet and cell phones open broad education and entertainment horizons for young people. But they can also have a dark and dangerous side ranging from cyber bullying to exploitation. He presented real life examples and practical advice about safety and well-being of children. Parents should supervise closely all activities of their children; it is very critical to monitor your child’s internet access. More tips: Teach you values, develop their self-esteem; know your kids’ friends, families, and values; Use common sense; good parenting/ communications skills; do you want to be best friend or parent? Say ‘NO’ some of the times; Use Filters, monitor software (computers/cellphones) ; Love your child / Educate!
Exciting activities for the month included, among many others:
· Went to the annual California State Fair (running July 14 to Aug. 1) last Saturday – visited the entire county exhibits (winner - Placer county), new products, animals, rides, concert, Hypnosis show, ate Funnel cakes, etc.;
· With Sean’s professional career, went shopping for new wardrobe – shirts, pants, ties, shoes, etc;
· Watched movies – SALT (starring action favorite Angelina Jolie) and Inception (Di Caprio);
· Attended the Retirement program of Col. Thomas Chapman and Change of Command of the U.S. Army Engineer District, Sacramento, in ceremonies held at the Memorial Auditorium, as part of my civic immersion. Thom (M.S. in Civil Engineering) is the husband of my O.D. supernumerary Deidre.
Attached are 4 recent photos from the state fair. Let us continue to pray for our country and people. Peace and Joy to You and God Bless Us All!
Much love and Best Regards!!!
