
Trades Talk – July 2025
Visit Explore The Trades at ASCA 2025! We’re excited to attend the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Conference in Long Beach, CA, from July 12–15! This event brings together thousands of K–12 educators from across the country. We’ll be there to grow awareness of plumbing,

Explore Your Impact – July 2025
Donor Spotlight Joe Allen Founder JAS Wireless Joe Allen founded JAS Wireless in 2003 with one clear mission: to help smaller companies lower their costs when dealing with the major wireless carriers. But Joe’s impact goes far beyond business. Joe is an active volunteer and

Making Decisions After the Sale
This blog post was originally written by Patrick Lange of Business Modification Group published on June 9th, 2025 and is shared here with permission. Preparing to sell your business is a process that takes careful planning over months, if not years. In addition to tightening up operations,

Giving Back Helps You Tell a Great Story about Your Business
This blog post was originally written by Patrick Lange of Business Modification Group published on June 9th, 2025 and is shared here with permission. When someone is interested in buying your business, they look at a wide variety of factors. Their primary goal is of

Can You Be a Jack of All Trades?
The Skilled Trades: Can You Be a Jack of All Trades? Smart homes blur the lines between skilled trade workers in HVAC, electrical, and plumbing. Modern technology forces an interaction among these trades more than ever before. Home appliances and many plumbing fixtures require electricity

Explore The Trades Visits Bemidji High School
This past May, the Explore The Trades team visited Bemidji High School in northern Minnesota—one of our 2023–2024 Skills Lab equipment grant recipients. What we found was nothing short of inspiring. The school hosted a special event to highlight the incredible year-long efforts of its

Industry Pioneer JJM Alkaline Technologies® Celebrates 20 Years of Manufacturing Condensate Neutralizers
Company observes major milestone while renewing commitment to serve heating and plumbing industries with the best acidic condensate treatment solutions JJM Alkaline Technologies®, the industry pioneer and leading manufacturer of condensate neutralizers, is celebrating 20 years of delivering the best solutions on the market for the

Trades Talk – June 2025
Explore The Trades and Ferguson Expand Skilled Trades Education with Grants to 10 Schools This past National Skilled Trades Day, Explore The Trades and Ferguson announced the latest recipients of the Skills Lab equipment grants—awarding 10 schools with the tools they need to launch or

Trade Schools on the Rise: Rethinking the Traditional Four-Year Degree
Trade Schools on the Rise: A Smart Alternative to College For decades, the traditional four-year college degree has been considered the default path to success. But today’s job market tells a different story. Skilled trades and vocational training offer fulfilling, future-ready career paths without the