The Center for Career and Technical Education (CCTE) at Somerville High School recently received an incredible gift — 700 pairs of high-quality work boots donated by BRUNT Workwear to support students in all of the school’s technical programs.
The effort began when CTE Director James Hachey got a call from Don Ducharme, Vocational Coordinator at Greater Lawrence Technical School. Ducharme shared that BRUNT Workwear wanted to expand its donation program to reach more Career and Technical Education (CTE) students across Massachusetts.
Hachey and Ducharme connected with BRUNT’s Associate Director of Community Relations, Jeremy Perkins, and his team to plan how to get the boots to students statewide. As chair of the Massachusetts Association of Vocational Administrators (MAVA) Vocational Directors Group, Hachey knows that many students face financial barriers when it comes to buying proper safety footwear.
“This donation will provide students with the safety gear they need to work safely on job sites and in shop areas,” said Hachey. “Many of our students wear shared boots from the shop or hand-me-downs from family members. This donation allows them to have their own pair of boots.”
Somerville’s CTE program served as the pilot site for the project, helping BRUNT fine-tune sizing, packaging, and delivery details. Before distributing the boots, Hachey met with each group of students to share BRUNT’s story and why the company wanted to give back to the trades.
“I wanted to make sure the students understood where the donation was coming from and why BRUNT wanted to give back to the trades,” Hachey explained. “The owner of BRUNT came from a blue-collar family and worked in the trades before attending college for business. His friends all worked in the trades, and he relied on them for feedback—many of them now work for the company. His goal was to reinvent the workwear category. The students were so excited to walk into a room filled with boots.””
Students enrolled in Carpentry, Advanced Manufacturing, Plumbing, HVAC-R, Electrical, Welding, and Automotive courses were eligible to receive one pair of boots. One student summed up the energy in the room, saying, “Let’s go! Now I feel like a real carpenter. Thank you, BRUNT!”
Following the successful pilot, BRUNT opened the opportunity to vocational programs across the state — and within just 12 hours, the response was overwhelming. Since then, BRUNT has donated more than 10,000 pairs of boots to CTE students across Massachusetts, with plans already underway for another round of donations later this school year.