"Being able to ride down the street with my kids and my family be like, 'your pops built that' ... that brings something to me. It brings a purpose," explains Solomon Jackson, a recent graduate of the Apprenticeship Preparation Program.
Providing that purpose, inspiration and hope through union labor has proven successful over the last 15 years.
Seventy percent of the over 1,100 graduates had jobs within one year of completing the program and fewer than 10% return to jail compared to almost 40% across California.
"We also have this life-skills class That helps us deal with our past and how to react to different situations and stuff like that," says Bryan Arciniega, who also recently graduated. "My background doesn't have to determine what I do with my future."
Californians with a prior conviction face thousands of post-sentence completion restrictions that force many into jobs with low wages and limited or no benefits. This program was developed in 2007 to help participants overcome some of those employment barriers.
"We're giving them exposure, the knowledge and then we're giving them the tools to be able to do the legwork themselves and go capture a career and sustain a career," says APP instructor Johnny Brown.
"It gives my children a positive way to see their father," said DeAndre Phillips, who also finished the program. He is now working to rebuild the West LA VA Medical Center, which will provide housing for at least 1,200 formerly homeless and at-risk veterans and their families.
It's a career that has not only changed his life, but how he sees his future.
"It's like opening your eyes for the first time. It's like stepping out in the sunlight after being in the darkness. It's like, 'wow I can really do this.' And once you get that, once you get that hope and whatever that is inside of me that makes me smile," says Phillips. "That makes me want to continue to get up in the morning, it's just great. It's a great thing. It's life. It's having life being breathe into you again."
The 10 week program combines workforce development and life skills that will last a lifetime.