I'm in central jersey, Clark area, and your welcome to come down my way if you want to do any small jobs like brakes, when it get a little warmer out.
But if your interested in hands on training, you should look at county vocational schools. I dont know about Bergen, but Union has a nice VoTech school and they have basic automotive, welding, carpentry, electrical ect. They have night classes for adults too, which is perfect. I know friends of mine took classes in high school and after high school, and the automotive class, they would bring in their own cars or family's cars to do work on them with an instructor, i believe others would bring their cars there to get work like this done free of charge except the cost of parts. I looked into taking a body shop class but never got around to it, and just started playing with my own projects instead.
In the mean time, keep going with video's and articles. You should look for a car forum that specializes in your car, and you will see people posting step by step procedures with pictures, for all types of things for your specific model and year. And they will be a great asset if you have any questions or issues. You would be surprised how much you can do relatively simply with basic tools on a car like the fit or any other commuter.
check out my DIY turbo build that i did completely through self study and communication through the forum in the link. I have an engineering degree, so i was always interested in tinkering, but I have no automotive training. By the way, that was pre-mustachian days, so i don't suggest anything on this scale, but just an example that a lot can be done on your own.
http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?4148418-VrT-Buildup