Cullman Daily had the opportunity to have Cassie Glover intern just before the COVID pandemic hit. Flourish of Cullman contacted us because they had someone that enjoyed writing and wanted to show off her skills. From the time we met Cassie, we fell in love with her soul. She is a fantastic writer that puts an enormous amount of passion into everything she does. It was a no-brainer for us to bring her aboard the Cullman Daily team. Cassie continues to write articles from time to time while she helps manage the Cullman County Weather Team page. The girl knows more about the weather than most meteorologists. She now has pursued a new venture at Publix in Cullman. We could not be more proud of the achievements Cassie has made in such a short time.
If you are ever in doubt that you can’t do something, meet Cassie Glover:
“I graduated high school in 2017, and that was when I was concerned because I was like, “now what?” I knew I had to get a job to get by. I have also wanted to make something of myself, and how I would do that was the big question. It was within that year I have learned that I am autistic, so I didn’t have any idea what I was going to do for myself after I left school, I was stuck in my comfort zone, and I knew I wasn’t going to get anywhere, so I was thinking in my head, “there’s no way I can do this.” I was painfully shy and sorely lacked confidence in myself.
In 2019, I was signed up to be in a program called Flourish. It is a program that helps people such as myself live independently and find work. I joined Flourish because I wanted to find a job, I wanted to become more independent, and at the time, I had no idea what to expect. I understood that I would be around people that I had never met before, but that was ok. I couldn’t wait to make new friends during the journey to independence. Through an autistic eye, everything is enormous, and every victory is not considered small. When I started ordering food for myself or starting a conversation with someone I barely met, that’s a huge accomplishment because for me socializing can be very hard because I want to say the right thing and avoid saying the wrong thing, but Flourish helped me gain that confidence to truly be my own person, all I needed was a little push. However, Autism does not define who I am; writing does. I love to write, so that’s another thing that happened in my life.
I had an opportunity to write articles for the Cullman Daily. I met several wonderful people in each interview, and I learned what they do in their profession. It was an enjoyable experience. I got to do what I love because I was stepping out of my comfort zone! I accomplished many things that I used to think I couldn’t do. Of course, 2020 was a crazy, horrible, and very unpredictable year, and it was tough on everyone. Everything came to a halt during the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, where we were locked down in our homes, so finding a job or doing anything else at the time was difficult.
I am currently writing weather trivia on the Cullman County Weather Team page, which I am very excited about. Since I was a kid, I have been passionate about the weather, and if there’s something I am uncertain about and want to share, I research it. This year since the end of February, I have been doing that when I saw they were accepting applications to volunteer. I will always be thankful for this opportunity because talking about the weather by writing about it has made me so happy and thrilled.
I have recently been hired to work at Publix, and the amount of happiness I felt after getting hired was probably an understatement. I was thinking, almost tearfully, “I’m really doing this. I am about to start a new chapter in my life in the workforce.” I wanted to have work experience, and Publix sounded like a wonderful place to start. I felt very welcomed, the workers are so kind and understanding, so I feel that my experience here will be incredible. If I compared to myself now before I joined Flourish, I would see the gap of how far I have come. After leaving my comfort zone, I felt much happier and free because the old me would have never done any of this.
I have a lot to be grateful for, such as everyone who stood by me and cheered me on as I flourished.”
