Alvaro came to YouthBuild Lake County with a GED and no clear idea of the career he wanted. He left with hands-on construction experience, a stronger work ethic, and an introduction that would take him into the renewable energy industry.

A member of the Class of 2009, Alvaro helped build two homes from the ground up, including framing. Learning to use tools and work as part of a crew gave him a foundation he would carry into a very different kind of job site.

An opportunity he hadn’t imagined

The turning point came when a recruiter from Suzlon Wind Energy visited his class. The company was looking for new technicians to work on wind turbines in Texas. A video of the work caught Alvaro’s attention, and he talked with YBLC staff afterward.

“I was nervous but they encouraged me and said if it was something I wanted to do, I should go for it.”

Alvaro, Class of 2009

Staff helped him practice interview questions and explain the skills he had developed in the program. When the interview arrived, that support went beyond preparation: Mr. T went with him and sat beside him as he met with the company’s Vice President of Operations.

“I was pretty nervous but he sat next to me through the whole thing and the interview went great. The VP actually called HR and told them to push my resume through. I basically got hired on the spot.”

Alvaro, Class of 2009

From Texas turbines to a future closer to home

Alvaro moved to Texas to work on wind turbines. His girlfriend joined him, and they married there that year. He later continued his wind-energy career with EDP, bringing the technical knowledge he had built on the job.

The couple enjoyed their life in Texas, but missed their families in Illinois. When a position opened at another EDP wind farm in Lafayette, Indiana, Alvaro took the opportunity to move closer to home.

In the interview he shared with YBLC, Alvaro described the next chapter in that career: a move from wind into solar, working at a solar farm in Lafayette. The tools and systems had changed, but he still connected his progress to what he learned at YouthBuild.

“When I started at YouthBuild I didn’t know the names of the tools I use every day now. They gave me a foundation for every skill I have developed since. But more than that, they gave me a sense of work ethic.”

Alvaro, Class of 2009

The support that stayed with him

Alvaro credits Delgado with teaching him to bring determination to his work, and Mr. T with helping him take the first step into an unfamiliar industry. A classroom visit introduced a possibility; interview preparation and someone sitting beside him helped turn it into his first technician job.

“YouthBuild is a huge part of my success. I wouldn’t know about solar or renewable energy if I didn’t hear that recruiter, and I wouldn’t have gotten the first technician job if Mr. T didn’t take me there and sit down next to me. YouthBuild helped get me where I am today, and I couldn’t be happier where that is.”

Alvaro, Class of 2009