By Alaina Bookman | abookman@al.com
Joseph Holt, 49, started a nonprofit to teach young adults trade skills that would help them do something positive with their hands – instead of succumbing to cycles of violence and poverty in Birmingham.
“I want to show our kids that they can do something positive with their hands, because they see me do it,” Holt told AL.com.
Launched in 2024, the Holt Foundation for Change trains local youth in carpentry, plumbing and electrical work, equipping them with trade skills that can set them on a better path. The 501(c)(3) program has impacted the lives of 25 young adults by getting them jobs, internships, scholarships and sending them to school.
“It’s about showing these kids that they’re enough. They’re good enough for a company, to go to school, to do something positive…We’re legitimately here to help these young men find their purpose.”
Coby Wynn-Henderson, 19, said he can see the transformative impact the Holt Foundation has had on him and other participants.
“He changed a lot of people’s perspectives, like the impact he has on the people that I brought around, he changed them a lot,” Wynn-Henderson said. “Like, they don’t even carry guns anymore, people that have been carrying guns since they were 12. All they want to do now is go to work…He changes people for the better.”
‘Be A Part Of Something’
When he was coming up in Birmingham’s Kingston neighborhood, Holt said he hoped to see his community transform and thrive. But decades later, Holt said, the neighborhood east of downtown and not far from more prosperous Avondale, is still plagued by poverty, drugs and violence.
“Growing up in Kingston, I was surrounded by poverty, substance abuse, shooting, abandoned houses and it’s all still there, from 1975 to 2025,” Holt said.
He said he wanted to help change that.
After graduating from Woodlawn High School, Holt went on to Lawson State Community College where he earned his certification in heating, ventilation and air conditioning before becoming a licensed home builder.
Over the years, Holt said, he renovated more than 50 homes throughout Birmingham, primarily in the Kingston and Woodlawn neighborhoods through his company H Plus H.
During those years, Holt also became a mentor, his home becoming a safe place for young men in his community, he said. He often would talk with those young men about making good decisions, helping them set professional goals after high school, apply for jobs, internships and scholarships. And he taught them how to handle their money so that one day, they could be self-sufficient.
“I got the idea to start a foundation when I kept seeing kids lost and not knowing what their purpose is right out of high school…I started telling them about what I do and about trades and how to use your hands, and they were so interested,” Holt said.
He motivated the young people he mentors to work, walking them through renovation projects. He also brings on other trade professionals to talk to them about careers.
Holt Foundation
In 2024, he officially launched the Holt Foundation.
“I bring these kids on the job site through the Holt Foundation. I pay them day by day and I can teach them about electrical work, plumbing, and I show them that they can do something and make money the right way, even if they don’t go to a four-year college,” Holt said.
“It’s been growing and growing…They just wanted to show up. They didn’t want to get into trouble. They wanted to be somewhere positive. They’re working. They wanted to be a part of something.”
Now Holt is also running for the District 4 seat on the Birmingham city council, where he hopes he can continue to inspire change.
“I’m hoping to build more programming and find more funding by running for city council and learning the ropes of where the money is going so I can allocate money to kids,” Holt said.
“I want to go to communities like Collegeville, Kingston, Inglenook and figure out why they are still in poverty…That’s why I’m running, because I can’t understand how a community still looks the same decades later…I’ve been working to change that but I don’t have enough power to do it by myself.”
Holt will be running against District 4 incumbent J.T. Moore, Darryl Williams and Brian Gunn.
The city of Birmingham will hold general elections for mayor and city council on Aug. 26.
“Their Mindset Can Change”
With 25 young adults, ages 18 to 25 years old, participating in the program, the Holt Foundation has sent four students to Jefferson State Community College. Holt helped five others fill out financial aid forms to attend Lawson State Community College and helped another three get jobs.
Holt Foundation member Wynn-Henderson, a sophomore at Miles College, said he decided to pursue a business degree after seeing the work Holt has done throughout the community.
“I can take my business degree and he can help me renovate houses and do construction,” Wynn-Henderson told AL.com.
Wynn-Henderson said Holt has become more than a mentor to him.
“He does a lot for me because my dad works out of town, so he’s like another father figure for me. If I’m not at my house, I’m most likely at his,” Wynn-Henderson said.
Over time, Wynn-Henderson has introduced his friends to Holt in an effort to set them on the right path. He talked excitedly about the jobs he has participated in and the lessons he has learned about electrical work, renovating homes and conducting business.
“There’s a lot going on in Birmingham. Some places all you hear is shooting…He keeps us away from all that. We’re out the streets, working out in the community,” Wynn-Henderson said.
After graduating from college, Wynn-Henderson said he plans to earn a contractor’s license.
“The kids I’m working with are realizing that their mindset can change, that they can make money through a trade,” Holt said. “That impacts the community, because they’re no longer thinking about selling drugs, they’re no longer thinking about guns. They’re talking about real estate, going to school, going to work.”
