When Dream Job Felt Like Nightmare

TRENTON, N.J. — When Jennifer Velez was nominated to run the Department of Human Services -- responsible for programs serving one in six New Jersey residents -- she called it her "dream job."

In that post, she oversaw the largest state agency, serving the disabled, elderly and poor.
And as Velez prepared to leave that position last week after eight years -- serving longer than anyone in state history -- she agreed it was "the honor of my life to be here."

But there was one day, she conceded, where the dream job felt more like a nightmare.