It's an early morning on the west side of Indianapolis, And class is already in session.

Hisses and crackles echo off the walls like sparks shooting off the table.

Industrial fans fight a losing battle, trying to keep the late summer heat off of heavy, flame resistant jackets.

as the helmets go down we'll start right here in the beginning.

And the fiery flecks of molten metal go up.

One Two.

One Two.

One Two.

This is an introductory class for students who want to learn how to weld.

Welding is everywhere.

I know people don't realize it, but it's like the car you drove in today.

That had parts that needed to be welded together.

The building we're standing in that also had some welding and fabrication.

Born with a creative mind in Guatemala.

adopted and raised in Michigan.

Consuelo is the driving force powering this nonprofit.

She stumbled upon welding while she was in college, And that's when she noticed something.

From personal experience trying to get into the wedding industry, I didn't necessarily have an easy, easy way in.

I wish I could have been in a space where I felt like it was more for me and women who look like me or had similar backgrounds.

the demographics did not improve after she moved to Indiana.

So Consuelo decided to create the space that she never had.

And in 2017, the Latinas Welding Guild was founded.

recognizing that there's a demand for workers with trade skills.

The Guild offers a variety of bilingual courses in welding and forklift essentials.

we want to be the person that we wish we would have had in our lives when we were trying to, get a career.

Or even getting into welding.

a space to open more doors for more people.

you don't have to be Latina Latino to participate.

we're open to everybody.

And so anybody who's interested in welding can apply.

Helmets down.

Three second tack right there.

Jomar Molina is one of the instructors here at the Guild.

What I really love about teaching is at first a lot of people start off obviously not knowing a lot of things.

Some people come in never knowing how to weld but When they finally see their First beautiful weld, their face just lights up, like it's beautiful.

They just they get so happy He loves teaching and he's a really good instructor.

Jomar's style of teaching involves a lot of show and tell.

Letting the students learn and grow from their own mistakes.

So I want you guys to do your first welds.

Theyre obviously not going to be perfect.

All right?

I don't expect to be perfect.

I just want to see how they are looking like right now.

It's an approach that two of his students appreciate.

He's very helpful.

And he also it's like, oh, no, that actually looks really good.

Keep doing that, keep doing what you were doing.

I'm proud of you.

You should be happy.

I love it because it's a dirty job.

Like, you get sweaty, you know?

And then at the end of it, you feel, like, productive.

Mystique and her sister Maggie are three days into their course.

Both were quick to say how they'd rather spend time around more metal and fewer people I feel like with welding, you do see people.

Obviously you work with them, but you're not client facing I also worked at a restaurant, only lasted three months I'm not a people person.

Hi!

What can I get you?

I just could not do it.

I could not do it.

I'm like, I can't.

The Latinas Welding Guild isn't just teaching these sisters new trade skills.

The Guild actively invests time and money into their students.

the funds that we do raise helps support students tuition.

funding can look like, gift cards for groceries.

It could look like we're helping pay someone's bills so they can come to class, or they can land a job.

Helping students get to and from their classes, or helping people that may not have a high school diploma or even speak English.

The goal for the guild is to find whatever barrier that's holding a person back from learning how to weld, and then remove it, I have had a lot of personal changes in my life at this moment, I'm kind of just, like, starting over.

if it weren't for that, like the scholarship that that money, I probably wouldn't have been able to take the class.

I don't have anything to my name.

I, I haven't been working for, like, three months.

So that's where.

I told them.

I was like, you guys told me.

Pay what I can, but I really don't have anything and they were like, that's fine.

We'll figure something out.

And like, an hour later, Consuelo had gotten me a scholarship, and I thought that was pretty cool.

Having access to all that support, all that help doesn't stop when a student graduates.

they're a part of this community now.

there are times where staff will follow up with them even after a year.

It just meant a lot, you know, I knew from day one from the first class I took I knew what I wanted to do after this Willadeene Wilkins is a recent success story for the Guild.

her first welding class was three months ago.

She earned her certification soon after.

And now she's part of a local union on her way in their apprenticeship program, They continue to reach out and get a hold of me, ask how Im doing.

appreciate it a lot.

Honestly, I mean, all the support and they give me kind words to keep going with the job Im in.

You know it gets hard.

From their first day on.

Students feel empowered by the guild.

The people here will push you to do your best.

They don't want you walking out feeling negative about yourself.

And so I like that this place is small and everybodys very welcoming, and very nice.

And they're also very willing to help.

And I want my kids to be proud of me.

I want my boys to, you know, be happy that their mom is a welder.

You can add Willadeene, Mystique, and Maggie to the growing list of over 700 people.

The Guild has helped introduce to new trade skills, Removing barriers and sparking change For anyone that wants to learn, We're trying to make a positive impact in the community through welding.

like, everyone belongs and everyone has the opportunity to have have financial stability.

And there's a ton of work out there.

So if you come here and we're just going to help open doors for you and with you.

To discover more stories, visit wfyi.org/AcrossIndiana