Two young adults with disabilities were given the opportunity to shake hands with legendary baseball coach Tommy Lasorda after receiving a special commendation from Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich during the LA County Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 16, as part of Disability Mentoring Day.

The national event orchestrated by the American Association of People with Disabilities is designed to help raise awareness of job seekers with disabilities in order to gain work experience and find employment.

Bob Watson, 22 and Latoya Ingram, 19, both program participants from the non-profit organization Work Training Programs Inc. in Chatsworth, were eager to participate in this year's mentoring day activities which included meeting with County Supervisor Antonovich and learning more about the inner workings of local government.

After watching the first part of the board meeting, the pair attended a private tour of Antonovich's field office in Chatsworth.

Throughout the day, Ingram and Watson discussed various aspects of local government including public transportation, emergency preparedness, the upcoming federal election and water conservation.

"It was interesting to hear the board members discuss different issues, especially the water crisis," said Ingram, "because it affects North County residents directly."

"It was pretty awesome to meet Mr. Lasorda," said Watson who took notice of the baseball coaches' impressive World Series Championship ring.

Watson and Ingram also received advice on finding a job in local politics from Antonovich's senior deputy Millie Jones, who orchestrated the day's events.

Jones spoke to program participants about the importance of being prepared for a job and described the need for developed skill sets such as computer skills, dependability, punctuation, accountability and interpersonal communication.

After spending a day exploring jobs in local politics, Ingram and Watson are going to explore volunteering to work the polls during the next election as well as possibly interning at a local politician's office.

The advice and lessons learned from today's experience will help these job seekers realize what it takes to secure a job in today's competitive market.

With the help of Work Training Programs Inc. these participants will gain the skills necessary to obtain future employment.

Work Training Programs, Inc. is a non-profit organization that provides job training and placement services, as well as independent life skills to individuals with developmental and/or physical disabilities, mental illness and economic disadvantages.

The organization serves 2,340 individuals throughout the counties of Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara, Kern and San Luis Obispo.

Work Training Programs Inc. welcomes and accepts donations.

For more information, visit www.wtpinc.org or call (818) 773-9570.