Built to Train
Hands-on work, product development, and job readiness teach standards theory cannot.
Founding Story
Ba-yiga 1948 commemorates the year our late father, John Mary Yiga, was born.
The foundation is a continuation of his life's work as a mentor, guide, and servant-leader to many young men and women. What he practiced personally, we are now working to structure into an organization that can carry the same spirit long after we are gone.
This inheritance did not begin with us. Our grandfather lived and passed down a tradition of apprenticeship, mentorship, practical training, and paying it forward. Our father received that spirit, embodied it in his own life, and extended it to many others.
We feel privileged to operationalize that legacy through Ba-yiga, a playful way of saying "the Yigas": a family-led foundation built to preserve the dignity of work, strengthen practical skills, and create pathways for young people to learn, build, and serve.
Stewardship
Ba-yiga is currently family-led by the Matriarch, who provides wisdom and continuity while delegating operating responsibilities to her ten children. This structure keeps the work close to its origin while allowing each function to be handled with care.
Philosophy
Great training begins with great people. We seek apprentices, builders, teachers, employers, technologists, and training partners with integrity, patience, practical judgment, and a willingness to teach by doing.
How We Build
We value bottom-up learning from the workshop, the job site, the customer conversation, the failed prototype, and the apprentice who asks a better question. Ideas should come from real work, not theory alone.
Horizon
Ba-yiga is not built around one campaign, one product, or one grant cycle. We build slowly, protect margin, align incentives, and let the strongest ideas win so the model can keep serving young people.
"The greatest thing a person can build is the capability of another."