Providing Hands-On trade skill opportunities to young people.

Wrenching For The Future

The Wrenching for the Future organization is breathing life back into vocational training with exciting projects that allow students to gain hands-on experience in a practical environment. Our hope is that nationwide recognition with our exposure program via rat rod builds will encourage more schools across the country to participate, and create a movement to bring back vocational classes, such as auto mechanics, collision repair, welding, wood working, fabrication, upholstery, electronics and other hands-on 'trade' skills.

Our goal is to show kids there are alternatives and to teach them to work with their hands and build cool stuff.

— Roger E Quast, Founding Board President

1937 Dodge Pickup Truck with LS Motor

Rat Rod Giveaway!

2023 WFTF/Ranken Technical College 1937 Dodge Truck Rat Rod was given away on August 10th at the Vintage Steel Showdown car show in Stone Lake, WI. Proceeds from this giveaway are helping create a scholarship fund for Ranken Tech.

In mid-February 2023, a group of WFTF build team members from Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Tennessee, and Texas descended on the Ranken campus. Throughout the course of the week, a total of more than 100 students participated and had the opportunity to work with WFTF build team members to learn skills like welding, grinding, upholstery, and wiring. Students spent the week alongside the WFTF build team members and Ranken automotive instructors to build this one-off truck in just four and a half days. The truck got a new motor, transmission, wiring, front disc brakes, drive shaft, and upholstery, just to name a few, while the students got the hands-on opportunity to use tools they had never used before and work in a setting typical of a trade occupation.

Why you should work with and/or support us

Teaching young people how to work with their hands and with tools will ensure the future of our skilled trades and bridge the skills gap.

TESTIMONIALS: “The week of my build was 100 mph. My car was the first build for WFTF and I kept thinking how are we gonna do this in four days? They brought kids from every class and had almost a quarter of the school helping THE WHOLE TIME, having every single kid that wanted to do something on the car there. It was awesome…a group of guys and women with a passion for cars bringing young kids together and teaching us to build cool stuff with our hands. It was the best week I’d ever had.” – Dylan J. “My experience with the guys from Wrenching for the Future had a huge impact on my life and career. When Wrenching for the Future came to my school and built The Ratillac with us, they taught me a lot about wrenching and welding. The experiences I had building that rat rod solidified my love for the trades, and welding and wrenching in particular. Those are memories I will remember forever.” – Caleb B. "A week ago I had the awesome opportunity to help build a 1937 dodge pickup from the ground up. Monday morning it was pulled out of a field and by 10:30 in the morning we had it down to the bare frame. I want to say a huge thank you to Ranken Technical College - St. Louis for hosting and another huge thank you to all the guys involved in Wrenching For The Future for taking a week off of their jobs to come build this truck and pour into high schoolers. I learned everything from body work, cutting, welding, brake lines, suspension, and much more. I had an awesome time building this truck with all the guys and made so many great friends." - Alex B.

Make a difference

Be a part of getting young people exposed to trade skills.

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Major Sponsor

Johnstone Supply in Iowa/Kansas/Nebraska

Johnstone is a national wholesale supplier of professional HVAC products. The location that serves the Iowa/Kansas/Nebraska area has provided a generous donation at the Major Sponsor level. Their support will help us secure tools and a trailer to transport them in.

Impact Sponsor

The U. S. Air Force is partnering with us on a school build in the Nashville area.

The recruitment office in Nashville, TN is coordinating a WFTF build at the Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT) in Smyrna, TN. The build is scheduled for the week of November 4th, 2024.

Basic Sponsors

Non-profit organizations can only exist through sponsorship contributions and individual donors.

We need to thank these sponsors who have donated to Wrenching For The Future in an amount of $500.00 to 999.99. Without your donations and/or sponsorships our programs are at risk. Please consider becoming a sponsor and your business identity can be seen here just like these generous folks! Major Sponsor = $10,000.00 or more Impact Sponsor = $5,000.00 to $9,999.99 Supporting Sponsor = $1,000.00 to $4,999.99 Basic Sponsor = $500.00 to $999.99 Individual Contributor = $1 to $499.99 Educational Partner = Host a build event Ambassador/Mentor = Facilitate learning club events

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Printable Flyer

Help us spread the word! You can be one of our biggest advocates! Print this flyer and share with your employer, friends, family or organizations that you think would be a good fit with Wrenching for the Future!

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Donation Opportunities

There are opportunities for your or your company to be involved in the Wrenching for the Future programs, with options for product donations, monetary donations and marketing trade-outs. All contributions go directly toward enhancing the experience for the students and schools, while also providing excellent marketing exposure for your company through social media and print media.

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