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Updated 12/4/07 |
 Urban
Boatbuilders, Inc. (UBI) is a non-profit
resource for youth to develop life skills through
the building and use of small boats. Building
small craft requires communication, teamwork,
perseverance, and craftsmanship. At our workshop
in the Midway Shopping Center of St. Paul,
Minnesota, young people find a safe, friendly,
and cooperative environment to learn these skills
and to establish a connection to local waterways.
Since 1996, we have worked with
more than 1,700 youth who have completed 140
boats. More than 375 youth have been introduced
to an on-the-water experience in a boat built
with their own hands. Urban
Boatbuilders has built relationships with
community based organizations and schools working
with at-risk youth. Working alongside adult
mentors and volunteers from their neighborhoods,
young people develop technical and
problem-solving skills and more often than not
increase their self-esteem, sense of
responsibility, and their respect and
appreciation of others. We have two primary programs. The first is project partnership, wherein a school or youth service agency contacts us to arrange for a boatbuilding project, either at their location or in our shop. We also have an apprenticeship program, now in its fourth year. Apprentices are recruited from our project partners. They are students who demonstrate proficiency with woodworking tools and techniques, and are willing to make a commitment to the continued development of these skills. This is an after school program designed to provide workplace experience to youth considering the trades. As we expand UBI's apprenticeship
program and on-the-water programs, we are rapidly
outgrowing our current space. We are presently
looking to develop a larger, permanent boat
building workshop with waterfront access. A small
boat livery could be maintained for on-water
programming and use by the general public.
Urban Boatbuilders relies on
energetic volunteers and generous donors to keep
the shop going. We always can use more energy and
generosity! Give us a call or drop by if you
would like to help. Generous
Support Provided by: McKnight
Foundation H.B.
Fuller Bush Foundation UBI Staff Dave Gagne, Executive Director Brian Thorkildson, Boatbuilding Instructor
Brian is a master electrician and works at Urban Boatbuilders part time as an instructor. He believes that getting youth involved with woodworking and working with their hands can expose them to skills they may not know they had. He enjoys woodworking with traditional tools and techniques. In his spare time he and his wife are restoring their 1927 Four Square house in St. Paul.
During Phil's eight years at UBI, he has enjoyed being able to share the experiences of wooden boatbuilding with hundreds of students and apprentices. He has seen this process time and again instill in young people an appreciation for craftsmanship, perseverance, responsibility and teamwork. His experience has taught him that young people must be given an opportunity to excel, and he believes that boatbuilding is the perfect medium for this. His extranautical landlubbing activities are
mostly outdoors: backpacking, cross-country skiing, and
generally trying to get lost in the wilderness. Chocolate
is his drug of choice. 2007 Board of Directors Bill Yaeger, President Past and Current Partner Organizations •
Home | Explore UBI | In the Shop | On the Water | Trade Secrets | Apprentices | Boats for Sale | Contact UBI |
