The tornado that ripped through north Minneapolis in 2011 didn't have an immediate impact on Alan Smith.
Smith had moved away, to Peoria, Ill., and bounced between several low-paying jobs while trying to take care of his family. He also admits he had gotten into trouble and landed in the county jail.
Smith moved back to Minneapolis because he was afraid "I would get drawn back into the violence. I didn't want to take any chances with that life anymore."
Smith came back to the devastation of the tornado, which destroyed or damaged more than 200 houses. He wondered what he could do to help. But his warehouse jobs didn't provide Smith with any tangible skills.
The force of the tornado, however, had ripple effects that Smith, 25, could not foresee.
The Northside Community Response Team was formed to transform social services on the North Side. Its plan includes the Workforce Investment Network (WIN), which provides vocational training and job-placement assistance, helping individuals become self-sufficient and get off government assistance.
For the past several months, Smith has been working with WIN on carpentry and construction skills, putting in long class hours, hands-on time on mock-up houses they call the "play yard" at Summit Academy OIC. He's one of the first of about 50 students, all of them getting some sort of government aid, to graduate in a few weeks. He hopes to use the knowledge to help rebuild north Minneapolis.
"It's five months of my life to learn new skills that will last a lifetime and let me give back to the community," Smith said. "I think I have a fair shot [at a good job]."