Henry Schwan Bubba Wallace learns how to use a power drill as Build America instructor Rob Robillard looks on
“Use core strength,” Robillard tells a group of college students while he bent his knees and put his weight behind a power drill as he bore holes into a thick piece of wood. Robillard spent two days last week teaching college students that descended on Concord from across the country how to make a difference in the lives of others, one drill bit at a time.
“I’ve got skills, and I want to make a real difference,” he said.
Robillard has teamed up with “Build America,” a program that builds and repairs structures at summer camps for the developmentally disabled, like wheelchair ramps and handicapped-accessible nature trails. He found out about it through Phil Benevides, a former employee who was a Pi Kappa Phi fraternity member in college.
Pi Kappa Phi owns “The Ability Experience,” a non-profit organization that provides outreach to the developmentally disabled through its Build America program. Robillard was the driving force behind bringing the Build America power tools training course to Concord.
According to Robillard, it’s normally held on the west coast, but in order for him to stay involved, he brought the two-day course to the home of Janet and Churchill Franklin, one of his customers, and received donations, which he called “huge,” from Milwaukee Power Tools and Concord Lumber.