Dirty Jobs is a television show in which host Mike Rowe visits and profiles people across the United States who do dangerous and overlooked work. Roadkill removers. Sewer inspectors. Those who dive into filthy water to scavenge for golf balls.

But it’s not just for kicks, Rowe insists. After several seasons, the host has become inspired enough to take his economic message beyond cable.

Through the mikeroweWORKS foundation, allying with companies like Caterpillar, he provides scholarships for people interested in training for skilled trades — not just to promote his brand, but to advise the poorly paid and unemployed. Corporate sponsorship notwithstanding, it appears to come from the heart. Rowe admires workers who don’t just get paid well but derive genuine happiness from creating something, fixing something, or doing the work others think is beneath them.