Know those colorful wrist bands that show support for various causes? Now SkillsUSA has its own version of the popular silicone bracelet — in red, white and blue, of course. Get 10 bracelets for $25 at: www.skillsusa.org/store/misc.html. SkillsUSA will donate all proceeds to hurricane relief efforts.

How’d you like to be “the apprentice” without having to work for Donald Trump? A new book, The 250 Best Jobs Through Apprenticeships, puts these at the top (in earnings, job growth and openings): police patrol officers, computer specialists, electricians, pipe fitters, plumbers, and heating/air conditioning technicians. Nurses, fire fighters, sheet metal workers and food service managers also made the Top 20.

Online Extra: An apprenticeship is a system of job training in which highly skilled workers are prepared through a combination of worksite and classroom learning. There are more than 480,000 current American apprentices, receiving training in 32,000 apprenticeship programs, according to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Apprenticeship Training, Employer and Labor Services.

The book, by job search experts Michael Farr and Laurence Shatkin, seeks to shatter assumptions that apprenticeships are old fashioned or limited to a few careers. It lists 875 apprenticeships spanning more than 300 occupations.

For ordering information, contact Jist Publishing, 8902 Otis Ave., Indianapolis IN  46216-1033, (800) 648-JIST, or visit: www.jist.com. Below is a sample chart showing 40 of the top 250 apprenticeships. Click the chart for a large version.