Eric Howk, pre-haircut, of Portugal. The Man

Eric Howk of Portgual.The Man worked on a public service announcement with NTI@Home to build a partnership that reached millions of Americans with disabilities.

BOSTON, MA, UNITED STATES, October 23, 2019 /EINPresswire.com/ -- When he was approached by NTI@Home’s Director of Marketing Michael Sanders, to collaborate with the nonprofit organization, Portugal. The Man’s Erick Howk was onboard quickly. That turned out to be a big move for NTI@Home and Howk.

After an accident left him paralyzed, Howk knew was going to have to find something different to do. He says now he wishes he had known about the nonprofit organization when he was trying to find a job.

“I had a helluva time getting back to work after my injury,” said Howk in an interview with Sanders. “I was working in call centers and doing odd jobs. Music got my butt in gear, (but) that’s a fairy tale in everyday life.”

After seeing the band perform in Boston, Sanders reached out and worked with Howk to produce a public service announcement, which exploded for NTI@Home on social media. It can be heard at portugaltheman.nticentral.org.

“People were calling us, saying if it wasn’t for Eric Howk, if it wasn’t for Portugal the Man, I would have never heard of NTI,” said Sanders in a New Mobility magazine interview.

While Sanders was working hard to promote Howk’s message, the guitar player was following along and watching the views for social media posts go through the roof.

“It was kind of a trip to see how much a life it has taken on,” he said. “I’m a big fan of possibilities. I love that you (NTI@Home) are kind of a toolkit for that.”

“I had no idea it was going to be as big as it has come. It is awesome.”

When Sanders approached him about working with NTI@Home, Howk familiarized himself with the organization and he knew he wanted to be part of helping others.

“A lot of their messages are things that I personally hadn’t really thought of myself, and they hit home,” said Howk in New Mobility magazine. “If you want to work, there’s a way. I was doing construction, and I pretty much, like, threw it away the second I realized that I was gonna to be paraplegic. Now I realize that’s ridiculous, and I’m sure I would be totally valued and useful on a work team.”

“NTI’s whole message is what would you like to do? And here are some of the things that you could jump right into right now. I think that’s a killer.”

Being a Grammy award winning band, Portugal. The Man finds themselves in demand to help varied causes. NTI@Home fits the band’s mission of helping other people.

“They (NTI) helps out an amazing amount of people,” said Howk. His message reached outreach milestones for NTI@Home, allowing more people to have an opportunity to find work. “Over 6 million people have seen or heard the message of the PSA and that doesn’t even include the 300 radio stations currently playing it,” Sanders said.

“(Howk) definitely hit people out there who are afraid to talk about coming back after a disability and move forward,” said Sanders.

Playing guitar in ‘Portugal. The Man’, Howk is calling attention to issues facing Americans with disabilities, something that bandmate and life-long friend from Alaska, Zach Carothers has noticed.

“We didn’t know how huge this was going to be,” said Carothers. “It’s been amazing to watch it. Eric has been an inspiration to a lot of people.”

NTI@Home’s goal is to actively fill more than 600 open work from home jobs using individuals with disabilities across the United States this year.

“We have work-at-home jobs for Americans with disabilities,” Alan Hubbard, Chief Operating Officer of NTI stated. "Staying true to our mission, we now need a multitude of qualified people to fill the roles.” NTI@Home offers free work training and providing a job coach to mentor registrants helps guide people successfully back into the workplace.

If you are on SSI or SSDI and looking for a work-at-home job within the call center, customer service, and IT help desk industries, contact NTI today at http://disability.one/PTMjobs.

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About NTI: National Telecommuting Institute (NTI) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit headquartered in Boston supporting Americans with disabilities since 1995. NTI provides training and job placement in work-at-home positions across the United States. NTI pioneered staffing virtual call centers with Americans for Disabilities who work from home. Register at http://disability.one/PTMjobs.

Michael Sanders
NTI@Home
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Eric Howk of Portugal. The Man - Public Service Announcement