It was a day for welcoming VIPs at the Pinellas County Job Corps campus—they were here to take part in the third quarterly meeting of our Community Relations Council. Senator Marco Rubio’s Outreach Assistant Savannah Sipsy, St. Petersburg Chamber of Commerce CEO Chris Steinocher, and Dr. Yvonne Williams of St. Petersburg College were just a few of our guests. Many important community partners were on hand and a wide array of shout-outs were given to those businesses and agencies that work with us to benefit our students.

More formal quarterly recognitions were also held for the Alumni of the Quarter and Employer Partner of the Quarter. Cesar Machado, owner of Fidelis Repairs, took home a plaque as our Alumni of the Quarter. Machado says he learned structure, responsibility and leadership skills at Job Corps. He’s had his own plumbing and maintenance business for 14 years and is in the process of hiring a Pinellas County Job Corps graduate right now.

David Colon, CEO of Pinellas Plumbing LLC took home a plaque recognizing him as our Employer Partner of the Quarter. While this is a relatively new partnership, Colon has hired two of our graduates within the last quarter. He says he has great respect for our program and especially loved visiting with students in the plumbing trade.