Linda McLean
Shortly after Bladenboro native Linda McLean was born her parents divorced, leaving her mother to raise the family on a very meager income. When Linda graduated from high school in 1972, she had no choice but to seek full-time employment to help support the family.
She went to work in the cotton mill—the town's only major industry. For nearly 32 years she worked in the textile industry.
When her plant closed in 2003, she reluctantly enrolled in the Office Systems Technology program at Bladen Community College after learning of the benefits afforded through the Trade Readjustment Act (TRA).
“I was terrified,” she relates. “I had not been to school in 32 years. When I learned that I had to write an essay on the first day of my first English class, I told my instructor I'd made a mistake and should not be there. She told me to relax and reassured me that I would be alright.”
Linda graduated with honors in 2006 and presently works in the Bladen County Tax Office.
“I was fortunate to have had an opportunity to pursue a new direction with the help of TRA and the Community College System,” she says.
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