Local YouthBuild Programs, Grainger Assemble Disaster Relief Kits

Local YouthBuild Programs, Grainger Assemble Disaster Relief Kits

LAKE FOREST, Ill. – To commemorate the 9/11 National Day of Service and celebrate the community partnership between YouthBuild USA, Grainger and local YouthBuild programs in Grainger communities, young people and staff from YouthBuild Lake County and YouthBuild Waukegan joined 500 employee volunteers at Grainger headquarters to assemble more than 4,000 disaster relief kits for the company’s annual “Bucket Build Day.”

The all-day community service event is designed to tangibly help those affected by natural disasters. The buckets, filled with items like small hand tools and cleaning supplies, help neighbors across the United States mitigate and rebuild when catastrophe strikes. Grainger buckets from last year’s event are currently being handed out in Florida as a response to Hurricane Debby and in Colorado to those impacted by wildfires. Earlier this year, buckets were distributed in Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, California, Nevada and Puerto Rico in response to flooding, hurricanes, snowstorms, tornadoes and wildfires.

The event also included short remarks on the importance of service, helping those in need and commemorating the service of heroes and first responders of 9/11. YouthBuild USA president and CEO John Valverde joined the service day, assembling buckets with young people and staff.

In YouthBuild Lake County and YouthBuild Waukegan, participants pursue their education and receive workforce training for successful careers in the trades and other industries. This year, the programs celebrate their 20th and 23rd anniversaries, respectively.

All young people who enter a YouthBuild program, anywhere in the world, pursue a dual mission: to create a meaningful and productive life for themselves and their families, while giving their best energies to improve the world around them. At hundreds of YouthBuild programs across the U.S. and around the world, opportunity youth — young adults between the ages of 16 and 24 who are neither in school nor employed — reclaim their education, prepare for future careers and grow into community leaders, building brighter futures for themselves and their neighborhoods.

In January of this year, Grainger, a leading broad line distributor of maintenance, repair and operating products serving businesses and institutions, announced a community partnership with YouthBuild USA, the nonprofit support center for a global network of more than 280 local programs across the United States and around the world.

With love and respect, YouthBuild partners with opportunity youth to build the skillsets and mindsets that lead to lifelong learning, livelihood, and leadership. At more than 280 YouthBuild programs across the United States and around the world, students reclaim their education, gain job skills, and become leaders in their communities. To date, YouthBuild has partnered with more than 200,000 young people to dedicate over 51 million hours of service benefitting urban, rural, and tribal communities. YouthBuild strives to create a world where all young people are seen for their potential, and power to transform themselves and their communities. YouthBuild USA — the support center for the YouthBuild movement — strengthens YouthBuild programs through technical assistance, leadership development, innovative program enhancements, and advocacy.

For more information about the YouthBuild movement and YouthBuild USA, visit YouthBuild.org.


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