YouthBuild Lake County

Geared up and ready for what’s next! 👷🏽♂️🩺🎉 Last Friday, we celebrated our Fall 2026 YouthBuild AmeriCorps members at their Gear Ceremony. Our Construction and Healthcare participants are ready to begin active programming and build brighter futures. 💙🧡 We’re proud of their dedication and excited for what’s ahead! #YouthBuildLakeCounty #AmeriCorps #GearCeremony #Fall2026 #WorkforceDevelopment

🏆 A proud moment for YouthBuild Lake County! We’re honored to be recognized as Service Organization of the Year by the Coalition to Reduce Recidivism (C2RR). Thank you to C2RR, our dedicated team, and the individuals and families who inspire our work across Lake County. We also appreciate that elected officials Office of Congressman Danny K. Davis and Representative Brad Schneider attended the event and spoke on behalf of the work organizations across Lake County are doing to reduce recidivism 💙 #YouthBuildLakeCounty #ServiceOrganizationOfTheYear #C2RR YouthBuild Global

More Than a Building. A Place Where Futures Are Built. 🏗️ At the YouthBuild Lake County Workforce Hub, young adults are building skills, confidence, and pathways to brighter futures through education, hands-on training, and supportive connections. We’re proud of this mission in action—and grateful to the partners, employers, and supporters who help make it possible. 💙🧡 Building Skills. Building Confidence. Building Futures. #YouthBuildLakeCounty #WorkforceDevelopment #BuildingFutures #CommunityImpact #YouthBuild

🌟 Meet two more of our YBLC Alumni Staff, Aaliayah and La’Nell! A little over a week ago, we introduced you to Jose, one of our newest team members and a proud YouthBuild Lake County alum. But did you know we have two other YouthBuild alumni who are part of our staff today? Meet Aaliayah and La’Nell! 💙🧡 Aaliayah graduated from YouthBuild Lake County in 2015, while La’Nell graduated in 2018. Today, both are giving back to the very program that helped shape their own journeys, supporting and inspiring the next generation of YouthBuild participants. Having experienced firsthand the skills, confidence, and support that YouthBuild provides, they now have the opportunity to make that same impact on others. For Aaliayah, one of the most rewarding parts of her role is helping participants overcome barriers and watching them grow from their first day of Mental Toughness through graduation and employment. For La’Nell, it's about speaking life into participants, encouraging them to remain persistent, and helping them recognize their potential. Their journeys are a powerful reminder that the impact of YouthBuild extends far beyond graduation. We're incredibly proud to have alumni like Jose, Aaliayah, and La’Nell on our team, continuing to give back and helping the next generation build brighter futures! YouthBuild Global #YouthBuildLakeCounty #YouthBuild #AlumniSpotlight #LakeCountyIL #BuildingBetterFutures

We were excited to welcome our friends at Community Trust Credit Union to YouthBuild Lake County! 💙🧡 Members of their team visited the Workforce Hub to present YBLC with a $1,000 CTCU Community Grant for the work we are doing in the community and to see that work in action! During their visit, they toured our facility, learned more about our programs, and saw firsthand how their support creates opportunities for young people in Lake County. We’re grateful for their generosity and for believing in our mission. Thank you for helping our participants build a better future! 🛠️ #CommunityPartners #CommunityImpact

During a recent behind-the-scenes visit to a YBLC construction site, we had the opportunity to see some of our alumni putting their skills to work and helping build a home for a future family. 🏠🛠️ They shared how great it feels knowing that one day a family will live in a home they helped build and how meaningful it will be to drive past it years from now and remember that they played a part in building it. Beyond developing valuable skills and work experience, they’re proud to be doing something positive for their community. We’re proud of the work they’re doing and can’t wait to see what they accomplish next! 💙🧡 #YouthBuildLakeCounty #YouthBuild #LakeCountyIL #CommunityImpact #WorkforceDevelopment

Talk about a full-circle moment! 🔄 Meet Jose Olivares, one of the newest members of the YouthBuild Lake County team — although he is certainly not new to YouthBuild. Jose first came through our doors as a YouthBuild participant in 2019. Since graduating, he has remained connected to the YouthBuild mission, speaking at national YouthBuild conferences as an alumnus and working alongside YouthBuild Global. Now, his journey has brought him back to where it started — this time as a member of our Marketing & Communications team! Jose will be helping us tell the stories of our young people, programs, alumni and community partnerships, while also bringing his own firsthand YouthBuild experience to the work. And if you notice a new face — and some new energy — behind our social media, now you know who is behind it! From participant, to alumnus and national YouthBuild advocate, to now joining our staff — we could not think of a better example of what it means to come full circle. Welcome back to YouthBuild, Jose! We are excited to have you on the team. 🎉

🎉 Congratulations to our July 2026 Pre-Apprentice cohort! Earlier this week, we welcomed friends, families and supporters to our Career Training & Workforce Hub for a Success Ceremony celebrating our participants’ hard work and accomplishments. It was a great night to recognize the commitment each of them made to building a better future! We were especially excited to welcome back Zaul, a 2018 YBLC alumnus who is now a journeyman in the Carpenters Union and a foreman on site. He shared his success in the trades and spoke about the importance of waking up each morning and making the decision to improve your life. As our third Pre-Apprentice cohort of 2026 prepares to enter the workforce, we’re proud to see them take the skills and work habits they developed at YBLC into their careers. Thank you to everyone who joined us to celebrate and supported our participants along the way. We can’t wait to see what they accomplish next! 💙🧡

🪣 Another successful year of building buckets and changing lives across the nation! Our new Fall 2026 cohort joined our longtime partners at Grainger for their annual Disaster Relief Bucket Build, working alongside Grainger team members and YouthBuild Global CEO John Valverde to pack thousands of buckets with essential cleaning supplies and tools for communities recovering from natural disasters. For our recruits, this was their second opportunity to serve alongside a community partner since beginning Mental Toughness last week, putting one of YouthBuild’s core values into action from the very start. These buckets will be distributed through ToolBank USA, helping make sure critical supplies are ready when communities need them most. A huge thank you to Grainger for continuing to include our young people in this incredible annual tradition. 💙🧡 #TeamGrainger #YouthBuildStrong

🎉 YouthBuild Lake County made the list! We're excited to share that YouthBuild Lake County was recently featured by Chicago Parent as one of Lake County's Best Vocational & Trade Schools. Over the past two decades, YBLC has helped more than 1,500 young adults build the skills, credentials and experience they need to take their next step into a career. Today, that means hands-on training, industry-recognized credentials and pathways into some of our region’s most in-demand industries. We’re proud to see that work recognized and even more excited for more Lake County families to discover what’s possible at YouthBuild. 💙 Thank you to Chicago Parent for featuring YBLC in this meaningful way! 🔗 Check out the full feature in the comments! #TradeSchool #LakeCountyIL