“You can see the change in Peter,” Theresa reports. “There is a new confidence in him.” 

Peter has been in the cooperative for over ten years. He has an interest in carpentry and eagerly volunteered to be the first adult to enroll in the pilot skills program. He hopes to turn his interest in carpentry into skills that can generate a sustainable income. 

Peter has very little formal education, but after just three months in the program he is flourishing. He is learning carpentry, computer skills, how to run his own small business, and the mathematics related to these tasks. But what warms Theresa's heart is how Peter is blossoming as a leader taking responsibility. 

He has taken charge of the little team that goes to skills school. He checks up on them. He ensures they are dressed properly and are prepared to apply themselves in school. “No one asked him to do that,” she says. "He is stepping up!"  You can’t teach that trait!

A new shoot from deep roots, indeed.