Axel M. Cepeda was referred to Building Futures by his friend Brian Pack – one of Building Futures’ first participants who is now a member of the laborer's union Local 271. Axel (32) says of Brian, “I saw Brian bettering his life through the Building Futures program and I knew that if he could do it, I could too.” Axel hadn’t considered a career in construction and had no experience prior to coming to Building Futures. He was, however, looking for a career and a way to give his four year old son a better future.
Having no formal construction experience, Axel was a little unsure of his skills. “Building Futures gave me an opportunity to show and prove to myself that I could do this and it gave me a chance to move forward and try it out.”
Axel was not satisfied with his previous work experience, “it was nothing that my son would be proud of.” Axel had worked as a delivery person for Aaron’s Furniture and says, “I didn’t enjoy that line of work because it wasn’t a career focused job.” He did work for the electronics department of a major retailer and didn’t mind that type of work but it wasn’t steady, “there were never enough hours to sustain a living and I knew that this job wouldn’t put me in a direction to better my life.” |