November 29, 2011, North Chicago, IL – YouthBuild Lake County (YBLC) is pleased to welcome Ashanti Wiley and Kenneth Love, Jr. to its Board of Directors. Both Ashanti and Kenneth are residents of North Chicago and recognize the importance of YBLC in providing young people in the community a second chance to improve their lives and that of their families. Having received education and job training opportunities that would not otherwise been available, Ashanti and Kenneth are committed to help provide YBLC’s services for others who want to make positive changes in their lives. Executive Director Laurel Tustison is excited about the new additions to the Board, saying “having Ashanti and Kenneth on the YBLC Board of Directors will ensure the voices of our youth are heard in the strategy and operations of the agency.”

Kenneth Love, Jr., a YouthBuild trainee since August, has flourished in the program, maximizing every opportunity to better himself and develop his leadership qualities. He has significant motivation to push himself every day, recognizing that “all of the other trainees rely on me and believe in me, so I am doing the best I can, not just for me, but for all of the trainees in the YouthBuild program.”

A graduate of both YBLC’s YouthBuild and Bridge to College programs, Ashanti Wiley continues to make amaze with her willingness to make positive changes in her life and the achievements that follow. Ashanti received her GED within her first month at YBLC back in 2009 and has worked for two seasons at the Mulch Center in the Human Resources Department as a Seasonal Office Clerk. She is currently working at the Salvation Army in Waukegan as an Intake Clerk and is applying for a second job at the North Chicago Public Library. Ashanti is pleased to join the YBLC team in helping other Lake County youth access this “place of critical resource, where young people can get back on the path if they’ve stumbled a bit.” We are also pleased to congratulate Ashanti for being selected as one of the thirty-seven recipients nationwide of the 2011 Helene D. Stoneman Scholarship and Civic Leadership Program Awards.

We are grateful that both Ashanti and Kenneth have decided to share their talents and hard-work with our organization to better help future generations of Lake County youth make the most of a second chance.

Please contact John Paul Graziano, with any questions regarding this release (jgraziano@youthbuildlakecounty.org or 847-473-3483).

About YouthBuild Lake County (YBLC)

            YouthBuild Lake County is a non-profit organization that helps youth and adults in Lake County improve their education, learn job and life skills, and secure meaningful employment. While in YBLC’s programs, trainees work to build affordable, energy-efficient housing and rehabilitation projects in the community.  Over 50% of our participants dropped out of high school, 80% were involved in gangs, and about 35% are parents. Every YBLC graduate represents a life lifted, a family saved from poverty, and a community served. YouthBuild Lake County is affiliated with YouthBuild USA, voted among the nation’s most effective non-profit organizations because of its successful partnering with local community businesses to reach its goals. For more information, visit www.youthbuildlakecounty.org.