Posted on the WLOS-13 website on September 24, 2026.
Woodfin, N.C. (WLOS) — Community colleges in western North Carolina are getting funds to help people land jobs with livable wages at a time when employers in the area are struggling to recruit.
"We need more people in the trades and more people that are willing to do this type of work," Bolton Services of WNC HVAC technician Luis Godinez said.
Godinez was the first person to graduate from Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College’s HVAC apprenticeship program according to his boss, and he did it with a 4.0.
Godinez hopes other people can enjoy the opportunities he’s experiencing.
"Whether that's plumbing, that's HVAC, hopefully they attach to something and pursue that goal," said Godinez.
His boss said they could use the manpower.
"We could probably take on 10 qualified staff members tomorrow, if we could find them. There is more work available in this area than we have the capacity to do with our current number of employees," said Bolton Services of WNC vice president Mark Bolton.
Bolton says they’re experiencing a worker shortage, but he’s hopeful that a recent investment in workforce development will help turn things around.
"I'm really, really proud, not only of our college, but our entire region," A-B Tech president John Gossett said.
He said the John M. Belk Endowment, a foundation based in Charlotte, awarded $3.2 million to community colleges in western North Carolina, with the funds to be split among 11 schools to train people and help them land good jobs.
Of the $3.2 million, Laura B. Leatherwood, the president at Blue Ridge Community College, sent News 13 a statement that says in part:
This week, we learned that Blue Ridge Community College will receive $300,000 through Good Jobs WNC to launch an initiative focused on two sectors that are critical to rebuilding our region and strengthening our economy: engineering and advanced manufacturing.
Jodi Wijewickrama with Haywood Community College said they’re getting $287,000, which they’ll use to expand their Commercial Driver's License program.
Gossett said A-B Tech is getting $290,000, which will go to its HVAC, plumbing, and electrical programs.
"All three of those programs, living wage, great jobs, leading to good long-term careers that our community needs," said Gossett.
An investment Bolton says he’s looking forward to.
"I would like to maintain and grow our brand that we're a trusted and relied-on expert in our field, and we're going to need trained staff in order to do that, and this program is going to be an excellent way to accomplish those goals," said Bolton.
Godinez says he’d like to see A-BTech put this funding towards more on-the-job training and bring in more HVAC and plumbing contractors to help design the program.
"I feel like for sure this could help anybody," said Godinez.
The $3.2 million being distributed is part of $10 million the John M. Belk Endowment has raised for Good Jobs Western North Carolina, an initiative formed by the 11 schools to help people land good jobs and to build the talent systems that will keep that work going.
The John M. Belk Endowment recently announced $3.3 million in new funds committed toward that $10 million. This new commitment was from the Rockefeller Foundation.