HabiCorps Sees Off 7 Graduates To New Careers In Construction Trades
“This program picked me up when I was at my lowest. Now, I am a leader. I’m a carpenter.”
These words were spoken by HabiCorps Class of 2019 Graduate John during an intimate graduation ceremony last week at Habitat Chesapeake’s main office. John and six other graduates were joined by family members, government officials, and Habitat staff to celebrate a major milestone in their lives – completion of a 10.5 hands-on training program in all aspects of carpentry and construction and the transition into a full-time industry position.
John heard about the program last year from HabiCorps Instructor and friend, Leroy “EZ” Smith, as he was assisting an independent contractor in Sandtown but struggling to find full-time work. EZ could see that despite his lack of formal training, John was a hard worker and willing to learn.
“In the beginning [this program] wasn’t easy,” said John. “The tasks didn’t come easy to me but it gave me a stable income. I watched my instructor and my peers and I began picking up on how they were cutting the wood, how they held the screw gun, how they used the nail gun, and its started to work for me,” explained John reminding his team of their first weeks in the workforce development program.
Nearly a year later, these graduates are like family. Every trainee greeted one another and their instructors with smiles and hugs, asking questions like “How’s the new job?”, “You’re just getting off of work?” and “You will never believe what I had to do today!”
“This program picked me up when I was at my lowest. Now, I am a leader. I’m a carpenter.” These are just a few words spoken by a 2018-2019 HabiCorps Graduate John, during the intimate HabiCorps graduation ceremony held last week at the Habitat Chesapeake affiliate office. Seven graduates joined family, a government official, and Habitat staff in celebration of what was a major milestone in their lives – completion of a 10.5 hands-on training program and the transition into a full-time industry position.
“In the beginning [this program] wasn’t easy – the tasks didn’t come easy to me but it gave me a stable income. I watched my instructor and my peers and I began picking up on how they were cutting the wood, how they held the screw gun, how they used the nail gun, and its started to work for me” explained John reminding his team of their first weeks in the workforce development program.
Nearly 11 month later, these graduates are more like family. Every trainee greeted one another and their instructors with smiles and hugs asking questions like “How’s the new job?”, “You’re just getting off of work?” and “You will never believe what I had to do at work today!”
For HabiCorps Program Director, Kristen these conversation starters are music to her ears. “When we hire new trainees they are always eager to leave their past behind and focus on a future in the trades” she explains, “Some are dedicated [AmeriCorps] service members and students, maintaining exceptional attendance records and demonstrating the capacity to learn quickly and teach others. For others, the program can be rocky and life circumstances can get in the way. Hearing these guys speak about their new jobs with one another is what the program is all about and it brings me joy to know that they not only believed in the program but used it as a stepping stone to launch a career that some of them never dreamt they would have.”
For HabiCorps Program Director Kristen Sheppy, these conversations are music to her ears. “When we hire new trainees they are always eager to leave their past behind and focus on a future in the construction trades” she explains. “Some are dedicated students, maintaining exceptional attendance records and demonstrating the capacity to learn quickly and teach others. For others, the program can be rocky and life circumstances can get in the way. Hearing these guys speak about their new jobs with one another is what the program is all about and it brings me joy to know that they not only believed in the program but used it as a stepping stone to launch a career that some of them never dreamt they would have.”
Since launching in 2016, HabiCorps has transformed the lives of 24 low-income individuals – many facing significant barriers to employment such as homelessness, lack of transportation, prior incarceration, lack of formal education or work history. Many had participated in other short-term workforce development programs, but needed more time, training and support to achieve full-time employment. That is what sets HabiCorps apart. A full 10.5 months of deep, hands-on experience; a support system to help address life challenges; and meaningful work building homes and communities ensures success for individuals who might otherwise be left behind.
The night ended with the presentation of graduation certificates and ceremonial hammers inscribed with the message “Thank you for your service building homes, communities and hope.”
This ceremony comes just weeks before we officially kick off the next session of HabiCorps (see below), which this year will expand to three teams of five, including one splitting their time between interior construction and exterior work, such as landscaping, hardscaping and property maintenance.
We would like to thank the Governor’s Office on Service & Volunteerism, Aerotek Recruiting and Staffing, the France-Merrick Foundation, The Orokawa Foundation, The Middendorf Foundation, The Henry and Ruth Blaustein Rosenberg Foundation, The Skip Viragh Family Foundation, The Bunting Foundation, Wells Fargo, The Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development, Habitat staff and a host of partners and supporters for partnering with us to offer the skills and confidence to these hard-working individuals who are now fully employed!
