05/11/2026
Mariana Dardon Atherton became a participant in the Next Step Employment Program in May 2025 after completing the Achieve Program at NSCC. From the very beginning, staff were impressed by Mariana’s enthusiasm, positive attitude, and strong desire to gain the skills needed to pursue meaningful employment.
Mariana successfully completed an eight-week Culinary Prep Program, where she developed a wide range of culinary skills, including following recipes, food preparation, measuring, cooking, and kitchen safety. Through her dedication and hard work, she also earned her Safe Food Handler Certification. Following the program,
Mariana was hired at the Easter Seals Rehab Café, where she worked directly with customers, helped make our famous cinnamon rolls, and gained valuable experience in cash handling and customer service.
As part of the program requirements, Mariana also completed more than 30 hours of volunteer work at Northwood Halifax in the Forever Feast Café. Mariana’s confidence, enthusiasm, and natural customer service abilities were immediately evident — within just 15 minutes of arriving for her volunteer shift, she was independently managing cash transactions and customer orders.
Mariana was also a valued member of the first planning committee for Easter Seals Nova Scotia’s youth conference, Building Your Best Life. Over a six-month period, Mariana collaborated with fellow youth and mentors to help design, organize, and facilitate a one-day conference for youth with disabilities, created by youth with disabilities. Her contributions were instrumental in making this inaugural conference a tremendous success.
Getting to know Mariana over the past 10 months has been an absolute delight. Her energy, professionalism, dedication to learning, and outstanding interpersonal skills make her an ideal candidate for her new position with the Nova Scotia Department of Growth and Development, where she continues to develop new skills and become a valued member of her workplace team.
We wish Mariana every success in the future. Her professionalism, strong work ethic, positive attitude, and exceptional people skills will undoubtedly take her far.
