A West Alabama Works resource outreach event for Greene County meant to take place Thursday has been postponed indefinitely due to rising numbers of COVID-19 cases.

The event, originally set to take place at Paramount High School in Boligee, was designed to give students and community members the opportunity to connect with institutions in and around the area to gauge interest in potential careers.

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"A tremendous amount of work has gone into preparing for this event, and we are aware of the negative impact this will have on the vendors that participate, as well as the community members that benefit from this event," said Tammi Holley, Coordinator for West Alabama Works' Black Belt Workforce Center. "However, this is a unique situation, and we must put the welfare of our community first."

Some of the organizations scheduled to attend were the Alabama Career Center, Wallace Community College in Selma and the Alabama Department of Rehabilitation Services. This event was also supposed to give attendees the chance to register for the WoW's job application portal - Career Connect, which is used by more than 16 competitive employers in the automotive, manufacturing, healthcare, hospitality and construction industries.

The event, despite being free and open to the public, had several COVID precautions already in place, including face mask requirements and temperature checks before entry. Even so, Holley told the Thread that although WoW felt safe with their procedures in place, this was the only way to ensure total safety.

"Even though we must postpone the event, there will be more to come," said Holley. "We hope to see all our partners and community members there."

Holley said she hopes to reorganize the event to be virtual, and that this will be even more accessible.

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