Mother Offers $500 Reward to Get Daughter a Job

One California mother has made it her responsibility to get her 36-year-old daughter a job, offering a $500 reward to anyone who's willing to help.

Linda Smith, 61, of Menifee, near Los Angeles, took to the streets Friday with a handwritten sign publicizing the deal: take her daughter's résumé, pass it on, and receive $500 in return if she's hired from the referral.

"I'm offering $500 cash the minute she gets hired for $15 or more as an executive assistant for an office job," Smith told ABCNews.com.

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For the past 16 years, Smith said her daughter Lisa received a government stipend to work full-time as an in-home caregiver for her after she suffered a brain injury when she was hit by a drunk driver in 1996.

Last year, Smith regained her independence and was able to live on her own, and Lisa has been searching for a job ever since. But with a GED, a few college credits, and only basic Microsoft Office training, she hasn’t had any luck.

"I've been putting out resumes since August,” Lisa Smith told CBS Los Angeles. "I did a record number of 31 in three weeks and got absolutely nothing."

So her mother decided to help since Lisa Smith spent so many years caring for her.

"She was getting to the point where she was like, 'don't know how much more of this I can take,' and nobody that's a mother wants their child to be in that position … all she wants is to get hired so she can earn her own way and not deplete her savings," Linda Smith told ABCNews.com.

Only 11 of the 80 résumés on hand were taken Friday by passers-by, but Linda Smith said the buzz on social media will help advertise her offer.

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"She's such a great mom," Lisa Smith told ABCNews.com of her mother's efforts. "So amazing."

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