A 26-year-old quit her corporate drafting job in Chicago to become a seamstress at Yellowstone for $19.25 an hour, hoping it will lead to Broadway and film work
Leaving a stable corporate job for a lower-paying seasonal role is not a decision many people make. But for some, building a career around something they enjoy matters more than staying in a secure office job.That was the choice made by 26-year-old Zoe De La Paz, who left her drafting job at an engineering construction company in Chicago to work as a seamstress at Yellowstone National Park, according to a CNBC report. She now earns $19.25 an hour and hopes the experience will help her move into wardrobe and costume work for Broadway productions and films.The move was not something she planned overnight. It came after years of trying to turn a hobby into a career by taking small backstage jobs, meeting people in the entertainment industry and looking for opportunities to gain sewing experience.
From office to gigwork
Until recently, De La Paz worked as a drafter in Chicago. While the job gave her financial stability, she felt creatively unfulfilled. Sewing had been a hobby since high school, and she wanted to see if it could become something more than a pastime.Instead of leaving her job immediately, she started taking evening and weekend jobs at music venues. She accepted whatever work was available, including taking tickets, handling catering orders and stocking dressing rooms for visiting performers.Those jobs were part of a bigger plan. De La Paz wanted to meet the people responsible for wardrobe and costumes on touring productions.“I knew that if I wanted to be in wardrobe, I needed to figure out a way to be in the same room with people that were in wardrobe,” she told CNBC.Her first opportunity arrived while she was working at a concert by The Weeknd in Detroit. As the tour prepared to travel to Chicago, one of the crew members mentioned they needed a seamstress to repair costumes for the backup dancers.“Cue me scrambling to write my number down on a napkin and telling them that I have sewing experience,” De La Paz said.She described the moment as luck, but believes people can improve their chances by putting themselves where opportunities are more likely to appear.“It was luck because I happened to be there at that place and at that time,” she said, adding that she believes “you can manufacture luck in your life.”
Choosing a different path
By January, De La Paz decided she was ready to leave her corporate career behind and focus on sewing full time.“It was really scary to be leaving corporate and chase my dreams, and do the thing the adults are telling you, ‘you shouldn’t do that,'” she said.While thinking about her next step, she remembered visiting a friend who had worked a seasonal job at Yellowstone National Park a few years earlier. The experience had made a strong impression on her.
Paz left her corporate job in Chicago to work as a seamstress at Yellowstone National Park (Representational photo)
She searched online for available jobs and found an opening for a seamstress in the uniform department with Xanterra Parks & Resorts, the company that operates hotels, lodges, restaurants and other services inside Yellowstone National Park.After applying and completing a phone interview, she was offered the position.
Sewing for thousands
De La Paz began working at Yellowstone in June. Her job involves repairing and maintaining uniforms used by thousands of Xanterra employees working across the park. On a typical day, she sews patches, replaces buttons and zippers, fixes snaps and carries out other repairs.The department also gives damaged materials a second life by turning old items into new products. For example, worn backpacks are repurposed into waist bags for employees.Jeanne Holmes, 73, a retired educator and fellow seamstress who helped hire De La Paz, said her previous sewing experience and ability to think through different situations made her stand out during the interview. “She had really good instincts,” Holmes said.Holmes also said De La Paz’s earlier sewing projects showed that she was creative. “She showed me some of her projects, and I could see that she’s very creative,” Holmes said. “That was going to be a plus.”
Lower pay, fewer expense
De La Paz now works 40 hours a week, usually from 7 am to 4 pm, Monday to Friday. She earns $19.25 an hour and receives subsidised employee housing and meals.Although the hourly wage is lower than what she earned in her corporate job, she said she is able to save more money because her living costs are much lower than they were in Chicago.Her seasonal role is expected to continue until around October. She sees it as another step towards her long-term goal of moving to New York City and working in costume departments for Broadway productions and films.
