Adrian Hoskins was excited when he found info about the BY Training program on Facebook. He had a background in heating, ventilation and air conditioning, but was looking for a change. After he read the description of what BY offered, he jumped on it.

“I want to be able to build stuff, work on roads and build buildings,” Adrian says. “I want to be able to leave my legacy: ‘I built this building.’”

His class met at the John Boner Neighborhood Center. He appreciated his instructor’s patience and his ability to identify and tailor his teaching to what each student needed.

“Our teacher was awesome,” Adrian says. “Everybody has a different skill level. I liked how he could help each of us individually.”

He also enjoyed getting to give his new skills a try during the class session through a project with NeighborLink Indianapolis, a not-for-profit that provides free home repairs to older and disabled homeowners. NeighborLink provides field work opportunities to BY students.

Replacing gutters, trimming trees and knocking down and rebuilding a porch all gave him plenty of practice with tools and a variety of types of work.

Now that he has his NCCER Core certificate and an Occupational Safety and Health Administration 10 Hour Construction Safety and Health (OSHA-10) card, he is researching unions and plans to start an apprenticeship doing concrete work on bridges and roads.

“With all the training I did, it will be easy for me to slide right in,” Adrian says. That work will drastically improve his earnings potential, compared to previous jobs that left him hovering near the poverty line.

He has persuaded two of his cousins to participate in BY Training as well. That way they can all three look to a better future and leaving their own lasting legacies.

Stories like Adrian’s wouldn’t be possible without support from Lilly Endowment – Thank you!