Jeffrey Potter
Age: 56
Job: Security guard at Quality Food Center
When things didn’t go his way: “I kept telling myself, ‘Just be patient,’ because that was my main focus.”
When Jeffrey Potter moved to Portland in 2014, he had no job, no permanent housing and minimal savings.
But he didn’t let his unemployment get the best of him. By the start of 2015, he took a job with Securitas, an international security company for protective services. He was stationed at QFC in July.
What were you doing before this position?
My job was to teach soldiers how to survive if they were faced with a nuclear biological or chemical environment.
How did you get your current job?
The reason I got one in security was I looked at everything I could do. I figured there was no nuclear bomb around so I could cross that off the list. So what else can I do? Oh! Security.
What’s your interaction with Grant students like?
I might ask them before they go to the game whether they’re going to win and they say, “Ummm.” I say “No, that’s not the spirit. You’ve got to say ‘yes.’’’ They look at me like, “Yeah, right.” But you’ve got to pep yourself up. Don’t talk about, “Oh, we might.” It’s: “No, we’re going to win.”
What’s your work schedule?
When I’m coming to work, everybody is getting off. When I’m going to sleep, basically people are getting up to go to work. So my life is just a flip-flop.
What happened when you first came to Portland?
They put me on a grant program because I didn’t have a job...I was living in an apartment. I would get on the MAX and go eat with the homeless. Between lunch and dinner, I would be looking for employment. I was motivated by the fact that I’m a go-getter no matter what.
What was it like when the program stopped paying your rent?
A lot of people would’ve given up, thrown in the towel, probably freaked out. But I just don’t do that because I just believe. I’m a person that believes in God. If I doubt that, then I must not have the faith. I almost got kicked out. He (the landlord) put a notice on my door for me to have three days to get out and I still believed that it was going to come through, which it did. I got a check and I paid it.
What does a job mean to you?
A lot of people come up to me and say, “How’s it going?” I say, “I’ve got a job. I’m doing good.”You see, I value my job. I get here 30 minutes before I’m supposed to. I come every day. I don’t miss a day. And I do my job.

– Interview by Kali Rennaker,
Photo by Cassius Pettit