Thank you to everyone who joined GRID Alternatives Greater Los Angeles staff to celebrate Workforce Development on December 15. Your presence at our Volunteer and Trainee Appreciation Party was an honor! Executive Director Michael Kadish and the whole GLA team thank you for being part of our family and helping us bring solar and solar jobs to the communities that need them!
This year, volunteers were fed, feted, and made to feel welcome by staff members themselves. We turned our warehouse into a warm and welcoming social area, complete with a dining area and a "step and repeat" photo op wall. Once people were settled, Michael and Workforce Development Manager Adewale OgunBadejo let them know about the unprecedented impacts GLA takes pride in showcasing this year:
- 425 families received solar across the region in 2017
- With our nascent Multifamily work adding lots of capacity to the grid in Lancaster and Santa Ana, we've installed roughly a megawatt in the last twelve months
- 4097 people joined us on the roof since GLA's founding
- GLA installations prevented 91,597 tons of greenhouse gases
We recognized some special award recipients who were onhand: Juan Campos is our Student of the Year. Isaiah Alvarez is our Trainee of the Year. And Stephen Brame, familiar to everyone at GLA as a 2017 Warehouse Intern, was named Most Dedicated Volunteer. We also recognized a series of excellent partners, like the team from Homeboy Industries that has played a valuable role in our reentry program.
2018 is just around the corner, and we're anticipating an even better year with new growth and new opportunities. Hats off to our unmatched trainees and volunteers—we'll see you on a roof again soon!