05/15/2026
Being a United Way partner, Community Transit has the opportunity each spring to showcase a local success story when submitting their application.
Carter Hansen works for CTWSI part time Monday through Friday detailing buses and performing custodial duties. Carter's attitude towards his job and people in general set him apart from most. Carter's time with CTWSI is short, but it has been memorable. Here is his story.
Carter Hansen wiped a line of soap from the side of the bus and stepped back to admire his work. The early morning sun reflected off the clean surface, and for a moment, he could see his own smile staring back at him.
Most mornings at Community Transit started the same way—grab the broom, check the list, get to work. But for Carter, it never really felt routine. Each bus, each van, each task was another chance to do something right, to do something well. At 21 years old, Carter knew he wasn’t just passing time—he was building something.
Through Project Skills, he had been given an opportunity. Not just a job, but a place to learn, to grow, and to prove—to himself more than anyone else—that he could handle whatever came next. With guidance from Voc Rehab Services and support from his job coach, Hannah Grove, Carter found his rhythm.
“Start with the inside first,” Hannah would remind him some mornings, her voice calm but encouraging.
Carter would nod, already halfway there, broom in hand.
He likes the structure. Following directions helps him maintain his focus. It gave his thoughts a place to land and there was something satisfying about turning something dirty into something clean—about seeing the difference his effort made.
Sometimes he works quietly, other times, he jokes with the drivers coming in and out of the garage. He likes the people, feels they have treated him like part of the team, and that means everything.
One morning, after finishing up a bus, Carter picked up the power washer. At first, he had been unsure of it—the noise, the pressure—but now he handles it with confidence. Water sprayed in steady arcs as he moved with purpose, washing away dirt and grime.
Hannah watches from a distance, smiling.
"Not every workplace would have given Carter this chance," she said, "but here, he has been trusted and he has earned it.
“There are a lot of things to like here,” Carter said, and he meant it.
But even good things don’t last forever.
Late May is coming fast and that means graduation from Project Skills. A new job is waiting at a fast-food restaurant he already knows well. A new apartment, a new roommate he hasn’t even met yet - all big changes coming quickly.
One morning, after finishing his last task, Carter leaned the broom against the wall and looked around the garage. The floors were cleaner than they’d been that morning. The buses lined up neatly, shining just a little brighter. He took a deep breath. This place had helped him get ready. Not just for a job—but for life.
“Ready for what’s next?” Hannah asked as she walked up beside him. Carter smiled, a little nervous but mostly proud.“Yeah,” he said. “I think I am.”
And as he stepped out of the garage that day, Carter Hansen wasn’t just leaving behind another shift. He was stepping forward into his future—one he had worked hard to build, one clean sweep at a time.
