It Started With a Promise: Why Capstone Painting Created a Trades Scholarship

Capstone Painting founder Daniel Rust launched the Trades Scholarship after experiencing firsthand the impact scholarships had on his own education

When Daniel Rust graduated from high school, the scholarships he received did more than recognize his achievements, they helped him afford the reality of post-secondary education.

Years later, after building Capstone Painting while studying Architectural Engineering at the University of Waterloo, Rust found himself thinking back to those same scholarships and the difference they made.

"I remember how much those awards helped out," he told CBC Kitchener-Waterloo in 2024. "As soon as I'm able to help out somebody else, I would love to be able to give a scholarship."

That promise has grown into the Capstone Painting Trades Scholarship, now providing four $1,000 scholarships to students pursuing careers in the skilled trades.

More Than a Scholarship

Rust never wanted the scholarship to be about a plaque or a line on a résumé.

Instead, he wanted it to solve a problem that nearly every student understands: paying for everyday life.

Food. Rent. Tuition. Groceries. Gas. Tools.

"The scholarships really helped with paying for food, tuition, rent, gas, groceries, everything like that," Rust told CBC after expanding the program in 2025. "I just thought to myself, as soon as I'm able to help out somebody else, I would love to be able to give a scholarship."

That's why the Capstone Painting scholarship was intentionally designed to help students pay for life's necessities while they begin their post-secondary education.

Whether the money goes toward tuition, groceries, tools or rent, the goal is simple: remove one financial barrier so students can focus on learning their trade.

Building a Business, and Looking Back

Capstone Painting wasn't started with the intention of creating scholarships.

Rust founded the company while attending the University of Waterloo as a way to pay for school. Like many student entrepreneurs, evenings and weekends were spent completing estimates, painting homes and balancing coursework with running a business.

Daniel Rust balanced university coursework with painting projects as he built Capstone Painting, the company that now funds the Trades Scholarship.

As the company grew, so did the opportunity to give something back.

"I thought, there's no better time to start than now," Rust said when launching the scholarship. "Hopefully in future years, just keep doing the same thing but bigger and better."

That vision has already become reality. What began as a single scholarship has grown into four annual awards through the support of the Grand Valley Construction

Association by matching Capstone’s contribution. 

Responding to a Bigger Challenge

The scholarship also reflects a larger issue facing Canada.

Across the country, employers continue searching for electricians, plumbers, carpenters, painters, HVAC technicians and countless other skilled professionals. As experienced tradespeople retire, there are not enough young workers entering the industry to replace them.

"There's quite a shortage in the skilled trades labour and that shortage is only getting worse these days with a lot of the older folks retiring and then not enough young people coming in to replace them," Rust told CBC.

The labour shortage has become a recurring topic across Waterloo Region.

Whether announcing new investments in manufacturing, highlighting innovative local businesses, or discussing Ontario's push to build more housing and infrastructure, one challenge appears repeatedly: finding enough skilled workers to build what comes next.

For Rust, encouraging more students to enter the trades became just as important as helping one student financially.

Changing the Conversation Around the Trades

For decades, many students were encouraged to view university as the default path after high school.

Today, that conversation is changing.

The skilled trades offer meaningful careers, opportunities for entrepreneurship, financial stability and the chance to build something tangible every day.

Rust hopes the scholarship helps reinforce that message.

The goal wasn’t to hand out financial aid, rather it was to encourage the younger generation to see the career path of trades as a first choice, not a backup plan.

The Grand Valley Construction Association shared that vision when it partnered with Capstone Painting to expand the scholarship.

"We are always looking for ways to promote the trades as a first career," GVCA President Jeff MacIntyre said. "Daniel and his scholarship have eliminated a possible barrier to participation."

Here’s What Our 2024 Winners had to Say

Daniel Rust (Centre) standing with 2024 Trades Scholarship Winners Niklas Emrich (Left) and Andrew Chumley (Right)

Andrew Chumley, one of our previous scholarship recipients, shared how the scholarship helped him take the next step in his electrical apprenticeship. The financial support allowed him to invest in the specialized tools and trade school required to begin his career, while the experience also connected him with a mentor whose guidance has had a lasting impact.

"The scholarship is an amazing thing that Daniel has done, making it easier for young people headed into the trades to obtain the tools and education needed to be successful starting out."

"With Daniels scholarship money I was able to put it towards buying some new tools and some of it towards my first blocks of trade school."

"Not only did the funds help with essential tools and schooling, but the scholarship provided me with an amazing mentor and friend for which I am the most grateful!"

One Student at a Time

Canada's skilled trades shortage won't be solved by a single scholarship.

But every career begins with one person choosing to enter the industry.

For Capstone Painting, that's where meaningful change starts.

One student.

One opportunity.

One investment in the future.