Barriers to success can look very different for all corpsmembers who come to our program. Our Career Pathways team provides personalized assistance to prepare young people to enter the local workforce, become entrepreneurs, and stimulate our economy. For corpsmembers like Luis, these barriers manifest as a lack of access to development opportunities, and a supportive professional network.
“Luis came with borne leadership qualities CCNB has helped nurture,” said Elizabeth Barron-Stolcz, who supervised Luis in his early days at CCNB. Luis came from a job at an automotive shop. Since then, he has obtained many certifications and accolades, including Forklift Operator, CPR & First Aid, and OSHA 10. Most recently, he earned his Sawyer III certificate, the highest level we offer at CCNB, and that requires a rigorous on-site demonstration.
“You have to correctly drop a few, decent sized trees to get Sawyer III,” said Luis. He showcased his skills by assessing the correct methods, considering location, obstacles, and even the wildlife that lives in the area as part of the process. “I had to explain what I had to do, like why I had to do a double cut for example, and do it correctly to get it,” Luis said.
Beyond his flourishing technical skills, Luis shared how CCNB helped him get out of his comfort zone. “The best skill that I have gotten at CCNB is physical and mental strength. CCNB has done a lot for my maturity,” Luis said. Supervisors share how he is the first to volunteer to take on challenging tasks and is the first to help new corpsmembers. “When I started it sounded hard to drop trees. Now I can do it easily,” he said. We are excited to see what he will accomplish next!