Veterans transitioning from military to civilian life often face an uphill battle. Navigating this new path can come with significant challenges, including figuring out how to translate military skills to civilian roles and securing gainful employment.
Navy veteran Hernán Luis y Prado and his wife, Rachel, founded Workshops for Warriors in 2008 as a way to help Gulf War veterans returning from service learn skills that would set them up for long-term success. They sought to impart the technical skills required for a career in manufacturing, a field that’s experiencing a critical shortage. It’s estimated that about 2.1 manufacturing jobs will be unfilled by 2030.
“It was deeply personal to him to do something to help these veterans,” says Rachel.
Workshops for Warriors provides hands-on training, accredited STEM educational programs, and opportunities to earn nationally recognized credentials in machining and welding. The nonprofit recently completed a new 25,000-square foot building for its machining program and are renovating a 20,000-square foot building for its welding program. Once both are up and running, Workshops for Warriors expects to graduate close to 1,000 students a year.
“We have an incredibly high completion rate and placement rate, and part of the reason [Workshops for Warriors] is so successful is because it’s a veteran run organization. The students are veterans, and they have their unit again that they left when they were in the military,” Rachel says. “After four months of training—640 hour training hours—they’re going from living below poverty to making on average $60,000 a year. And that’s transformative.”
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What’s more is Workshops for Warriors helps veterans find purpose and connect with an identity outside of military service, she adds. “All of those contribute to a successful transition into civilian life,” Rachel says. Workshops for Warriors was recently approved as GI Bill eligible and earned national accreditation, but the program’s success wouldn’t be possible without donor support.
“We’ve grown due to our donors, our individuals and our foundations and corporations, who believe in helping veterans and giving them the tools to succeed,” she says. She encourages members of the public to consider supporting Workshops for Warriors or visiting the campus and hear from the students themselves about the program’s impact. Naming opportunities in the new buildings are also available.
“Every single semester, I’ll have a student come up—or more than one student come up—and say, ‘You saved my life,’” she says.
