黑料福利社

HARRAH 鈥� The former Harrah Elementary School building is getting a new life after being vacant for almost six years. The new owners plan to use it to expand workforce training and economic development for the community.听

Local nonprofit organization bought the 500,000-square-foot building at聽3851 Harrah Road this spring. The nonprofit provides 16- to 25-year-olds with hands-on training and employment opportunities on the Yakama Reservation.

The goal is to invest in local kids and young adults by equipping them with vocational, life and character skills. 聽

"Each person has potential and skills, and sometimes they just need a little bit of help trying to figure out what that potential is," said nonprofit founder Darren Maxfield. "And so, we really wanted to lean into that and see what we can do."

Swan Vocational Enterprises currently operates out of a former 5,000-square-foot church in White Swan. The new building will allow the nonprofit to expand operations and employ more young people in the area.

In total, the building and renovations will cost around $1.5 million. The nonprofit has raised $1.3 million so far. Donations can be made on the .听

How Swan Vocational Enterprises works

The nonprofit runs three departments, Swan Graphics, Swan Seed Company and Swan Education. The graphics and seed company businesses provide on-the-job training, while Swan Education develops employees' academic and life skills.听

"Part of the reason why we chose those businesses is so that we could be working alongside young people in a kind of apprenticeship-type format," Maxfield said.

Swan Graphics is a screenprinting and embroidery business, so employees are learning graphic design, how to operate screenprinting and embroidery machines and how to mix ink.听Swan Seed Company teaches them how to grow and harvest plants, and what to grow based on seasons. They also learn about the horticultural business.听

"They get paid at least minimum wage," Maxfield said. "And many are making more than that as they work with us over a longer period of time."

The young employees are paid to take classes. In class, they learn about drafting emails, financial literacy, Microsoft Excel, emotional regulation and other life and academic skills.听

Since Maxfield and his family founded the nonprofit in 2020, it has grown from two employees to 11. There are a handful of interested people on the waiting list.听

Maxfield, who has a background as an accountant, first opened Swan Graphics in 2017聽after a mission trip to White Swan.

The new building聽

Swan Vocational Enterprises will use Harrah Elementary School's former building to buy additional screenprinting and embroidery machines, allowing the nonprofit to hire more employees. More space would also allow the nonprofit to create more programs.听

Unused space in the building will be leased out to other organizations or businesses.

"We hope there may be a multiplier effect by having that facility and businesses coming into the community," Maxfield said.

The former elementary school's playground will have enough room for the seed company's farm. Inside the聽building, there will be storage space for Swan Seed Company, dedicated classrooms, office space and an employee lounge.听

The organization plans to expand the nonprofit's classroom offerings to non-employees in the future.听

Since the building used to be an elementary school, it's already ADA-compliant, but there's still work to do. In addition to the renovations, Maxfield plans to rezone the building.

Maxfield's goal is to move into the graphics and seed company by September or October. He plans to start leasing unused space in 2027.

Community support and impact聽

Maxfield said the community support for the nonprofit has been positive. Since all the money made goes back into the organization to benefit the community, people see his vision and want to support its mission.听

Swan Vocational Enterprises聽wants to provide economic stability for people who live in and want to stay in the community.听Maxfield owns a duplex in Toppenish that he rents to two of his employees to support their housing stability.听

"A big part of what we do is providing hope for young people to see where they could go and what they could do with hard work," he said.