The first black secretary of labor last night carried a message of hope, persistence and hard work to young people who might feel left out of the American dream.

Alexis Herman first used her own hard-learned experiences of life as a woman and a person of color growing up in the Deep South as evidence of how people can succeed if they persist.

Then she talked about the ageless lessons that her grandmother -- now 102 and still living by herself on the south side of Chicago -- taught her.

They were the lessons of making new friends but not forgetting old ones of "blooming where you are planted" and doing your best in whatever job you undertake.

Herman's appearance at the Hyperlink Café on West Grace Street in Richmond was sponsored by Generation Engage, a nonpartisan group that hopes to energize the youth vote. It especially targets what was said to be the 49 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds who have no college experience.

Herman, who was labor secretary in President Bill Clinton's second term, left no doubt about what she believes is necessary for young people to compete for the jobs of the future.

"High school is not enough anymore," she told dozens of 20-somethings and others gathered at the Hyperlink.

"What you learn today will impact what you earn tomorrow," she said, urging young people to find ways to better themselves through education.

Tiffany Jana of Richmond, a 28-year-old single mother, lifted the audience with her own story of persistence. She said she dropped out of college and had two children, and then divorced before she took control of her life.

Now, she said, she has a small marketing company that allows her to earn money while she pursues her education. She has earned a bachelor's degree through online courses, and she's trying to earn a master's of business administration.

Jana and Herman conveyed the significance of not trusting luck to reach your goals.

What matters, they said, was preparation.

"Are you going to be prepared when your opportunity comes?" Jana asked.

Herman, 58, noted that the work force of the future will be far different from the one she encountered as a young woman in Mobile, Ala.

But she said some things never change:

"You still have to show up on time," she said. "You have to be articulate and be part of a team . . . [and] you still have to work hard."