--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My first-ever job was when I was 14 or 15…" description: "\"My first-ever job was when I was 14 or 15 in Washington, D.C., a job that I got through Marion Barry's summer-youth-employment program. It was working ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f79/jeffrey-wright-14855_deep_my-first-ever-job-was-when-i-was-14-or-1_3231504.jpg" --- # My first-ever job was when I was 14 or 15 in Washington… ![“My first-ever job was when I was 14 or 15 in Washington, D.C., a job that I got through Marion Barry's summer-youth-employment program. It was working in the locker room of a public swimming pool, deep inside Anacostia in Southeast D.C., about five to 10 minutes from my house.” quote by Jeffrey Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f79/jeffrey-wright-14855_deep_my-first-ever-job-was-when-i-was-14-or-1_3231504.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f79/jeffrey-wright-14855_deep_my-first-ever-job-was-when-i-was-14-or-1_3231504.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f79/jeffrey-wright-14855_deep_my-first-ever-job-was-when-i-was-14-or-1_3231504.jpg) > “My first-ever job was when I was 14 or 15 in Washington, D.C., a job that I got through Marion Barry's summer-youth-employment program. It was working in the locker room of a public swimming pool, deep inside Anacostia in Southeast D.C., about five to 10 minutes from my house.” [Jeffrey Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-wright/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A teenage job in a community pool, obtained through a local employment program, highlights early work experience and community ties. **In simple terms:** Early jobs teach responsibility and community connection. Key Takeaway Value early work and local opportunities. Themes work community youth employment Mood reflective nostalgic Type biographical inspirational When to use this quote - career development - community involvement - personal history Key Concepts public service social mobility local programs Questions to Reflect On - What skills did you gain from that job? - How did community programs shape your path? A Different Perspective Early jobs may limit academic focus. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Job](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/job/) [Locker room](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/locker-room/) [Swimming pool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/swimming-pool/) ## Related quotes > [People should not be paid to go to Washington and not do their job. When they don't show up, why should we pay them?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-beruff/people-should-not-be-paid-to-go-to-washington-and-not-do-their-job/) [Carlos Beruff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-beruff/) > [If you ask me what's on my mind you probably wont believe it cause if life was one big pool I'd be in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james/if-you-ask-me-what-s-on-my-mind-you-probably-wont-believe-it-cause-if/) [James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james/) > [I'd just stepped out of the kiddie pool and into the deep end, with no floaties. And drowning was not an option.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-vincent/i-d-just-stepped-out-of-the-kiddie-pool-and-into-the-deep-end-with-no/) [Rachel Vincent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-vincent/) > [The 1st Congressional District contains almost half of the biotech and biomedical companies in Washington, and my job often allows me to meet the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-inslee/the-1st-congressional-district-contains-almost-half-of-the-biotech/) [Jay Inslee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-inslee/) > [“Go ahead into life, full-blooded, courageous and leap for the adventure. But you must do it soon—before the summer of your youth has cooled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-reichl/go-ahead-into-life-full-blooded-courageous-and-leap-for-the-adventure/) [Ruth Reichl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-reichl/) > [“The smell of sex always reminds me of summer youth camps growing up.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/the-smell-of-sex-always-reminds-me-of-summer-youth-camps-growing-up/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > ['Tis now the summer of your youth: time has not cropped the roses from your cheek, though sorrow long has washed them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-moore/tis-now-the-summer-of-your-youth-time-has-not-cropped-the-roses-from/) Edward Moore > [You might not remember what you had for dinner last night, but you remember everything about one particular summer of your youth. It's like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigrid-nunez/you-might-not-remember-what-you-had-for-dinner-last-night-but-you/) [Sigrid Nunez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigrid-nunez/) > [Let me make it clear that the Youth Employment Opportunities Act of 1961 is not primarily concerned with delinquency prevention. Rather, it is designed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/let-me-make-it-clear-that-the-youth-employment-opportunities-act-of/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [I don't think there is enough youth employment or enough push for youths to kind of do want they want to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaya-scodelario/i-don-t-think-there-is-enough-youth-employment-or-enough-push-for/) [Kaya Scodelario](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaya-scodelario/) > [To promote youth employment through policy solutions, President Trump has placed a very high priority on workforce training, providing young people and other workers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-kirk/to-promote-youth-employment-through-policy-solutions-president-trump/) [Charlie Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-kirk/) > [The Youth Employment Fund is helping Ontario's young people build valuable skills and access job opportunities that will lay the groundwork for successful careers.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-duguid/the-youth-employment-fund-is-helping-ontario-s-young-people-build/) [Brad Duguid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-duguid/) > [Preparing youth for employment requires training that is demand-driven to meet the needs of companies and ensure that young people are taught marketable skills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-a-schwarzman/preparing-youth-for-employment-requires-training-that-is-demand/) [Stephen A. Schwarzman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-a-schwarzman/) > [The education of youth, an employment of more consequence than making laws and preaching the gospel, because it lays the foundation on which both…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-webster/the-education-of-youth-an-employment-of-more-consequence-than-making/) [Noah Webster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-webster/) > [ “It turned out to be just his sort of life in Melbourne \[Florida\] -- a little three-room mini apartment to himself, and down on… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wells-tower/it-turned-out-to-be-just-his-sort-of-life-in-melbourne-florida-a/) [Wells Tower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wells-tower/) ## More by Jeffrey Wright > [The line between being a nurturing parent and an over-bearing, damaging parent is one that's very delicate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-wright/the-line-between-being-a-nurturing-parent-and-an-over-bearing/) [Jeffrey Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-wright/) > [For me, an actor is a person who makes characters like a cobbler makes shoes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-wright/for-me-an-actor-is-a-person-who-makes-characters-like-a-cobbler-makes/) [Jeffrey Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-wright/) > [Having been born and raised in Washington, D.C., you kind of absorb politics when you grow up. And it continues to be a focus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-wright/having-been-born-and-raised-in-washington-d-c-you-kind-of-absorb/) [Jeffrey Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-wright/) > [I do a little Reddit, yeah! I pop in every now and again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-wright/i-do-a-little-reddit-yeah-i-pop-in-every-now-and-again/) [Jeffrey Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-wright/) > [I like to do theater and hopefully be effective. Most actors, at least contemporary actors of my generation, can't do it. They don't have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-wright/i-like-to-do-theater-and-hopefully-be-effective-most-actors-at-least/) [Jeffrey Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-wright/) > [I find that the work I do as an actor that's most challenging commands an athleticism or, certainly, a physicality. And also a rigor,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-wright/i-find-that-the-work-i-do-as-an-actor-that-s-most-challenging/) [Jeffrey Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-wright/) > [I do have characters who are more well known than I am, which suits me fine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-wright/i-do-have-characters-who-are-more-well-known-than-i-am-which-suits-me/) [Jeffrey Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-wright/) > [Some of my earliest heroes were congresswomen like Shirley Chisholm and Barbara Jordan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-wright/some-of-my-earliest-heroes-were-congresswomen-like-shirley-chisholm/) [Jeffrey Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-wright/) > [I started acting when I was at Amherst my junior year, and my lacrosse career kind of started to flop sideways after that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-wright/i-started-acting-when-i-was-at-amherst-my-junior-year-and-my-lacrosse/) [Jeffrey Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-wright/) > [I like New York because you're kind of forced to smell everybody else's funk. 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You know, it rises and it crests and it flies, and it's just magnificent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-seymour/and-i-always-think-of-life-like-a-giant-wave-you-know-it-rises-and-it/) [Jane Seymour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-seymour/) > [Extremist perspectives win sympathy and recruits because they offer narratives that claim to identify deep injustices and enemies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonas-gahr-store/extremist-perspectives-win-sympathy-and-recruits-because-they-offer/) [Jonas Gahr Store](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonas-gahr-store/) > [I want to have a lengthy career. I want to play interesting characters. I want to tell beautiful stories, complex stories, deep stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jovan-adepo/i-want-to-have-a-lengthy-career-i-want-to-play-interesting-characters/) [Jovan Adepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jovan-adepo/) > [We all have love hidden deep inside us. It just takes that special person to look hard enough to find it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-all-have-love-hidden-deep-inside-us-it-just-takes-that-special/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [They say a picture paints a thousand words. Well I say my eyes will tell you everything you need to know. Can you see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemis-khan/they-say-a-picture-paints-a-thousand-words-well-i-say-my-eyes-will/) [Kemis Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemis-khan/) > [I had a brilliant relationship with Thomas Tuchel. We spoke a lot, not only on the surface, but really deep about football and our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-farke/i-had-a-brilliant-relationship-with-thomas-tuchel-we-spoke-a-lot-not/) [Daniel Farke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-farke/) > [I want to go deep into fashion; I want to go maybe into acting. 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