YouthBuild Boston celebrates 25 years of 'Engineering Change'

Photo caption: Joel Feinberg (Principal, Hackett Feinberg P.C., YBB Board member), Shamee Mitchell ( YBB Alum and 2015 Honoree), Ken Smith (Executive Director, YBB), Torris Portis (YBB Alum), Tom Goemaat (Shawmut Design & Construction CEO, Vice President, YBB Board), Brian Moynihan (Bank of America CEO, Honoree), Sonia Alleyne (President, YBB Board)

YouthBuild Boston (YBB) celebrated 25 years of helping young people enter the trades with a gala on Thursday, June 4, at the Boston headquarters of Shawmut Design and Construction.

YBB serves young people aged 14-24 in Boston and its surrounding areas. These communities are plagued with high crime rates, unemployment, and a high number of young people who lack basic literacy skills. The organization offers vocational training, as well as specialized programs such as uBuild, which engages youth as volunteers to lead meaningful community rehabilitation projects for local nonprofits, and The Designery, an afterschool/college readiness program that exposes secondary students to architecture/urban design.

Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan was honored as a corporate leader at the gala, titled Engineering Change: Celebrating 25 Year of YouthBuild Boston.

Moynihan is a former board member for the organization. Current board members include Bank of America executives Debbie Helvig and John Wolff.

“YouthBuild Boston connects our city’s young people with critical job skills,” said Moynihan. “The hands-on approach to job training puts young men and women on a path to success.”

In addition to Moynihan, Mark Erlich of the New England Regional Council of Carpenters was honored as an industry leader. Erlich has been a member of Carpenters Local 40 since 1975, and serves as chair of the New England Carpenters Benefits Fund and the New England Carpenters Training Fund. He also serves on the boards of community-based organizations, including MassINC and RoxMAPP.

Two alumni, Shamee Mitchell and Caron Reese, were also recognized at the gala.

“When I look back at all YouthBuild Boston has accomplished in the past 25 years, I feel an immense sense of gratitude to our friends. We have been able to accomplish a great deal for our students and the community, and it wouldn’t be possible without the support of Boston’s philanthropic leaders and the building trades,” said Ken Smith, Executive Director of YouthBuild Boston. “I am excited to celebrate this milestone while looking ahead to YBB’s future, and how we’re going to get there with our partners.”