I recently presented a talk about my journey into this industry, and why I founded Hope Renovations, my nonprofit that prepares women and gender-expansive folks for jobs in construction and helps older adults age in place. In my talk I shared that, although the number of women in construction is now at a 20-year high, at this rate it will take about 200 years for us to achieve gender equity.
When I started Hope in 2020, my intent was to help underemployed women access meaningful, living wage-paying work in an industry I had grown to love. My own journey started by accident, a common refrain I hear from other women in building.
For me, it began with learning how to DIY after my husband and I bought our first home. It was a foreclosure and my tastes were outside my budget.
But as I watched contractors I’d hired, I began to think, “I could do that. I just need to teach myself how.” One thing led to another and I went from small cosmetic repairs to learning how to run electrical, install plumbing, frame walls and so on. I absolutely loved it. I buzzed with excitement when I ran power tools. My happy place was hanging out in a crawlspace, stapling wire and gluing up PVC.
And it made sense. Growing up, I adored puzzles, sometimes sitting for hours in our basement, doing one after another. Remodeling is just that; one big puzzle. It satisfied the same desire I’d had as a kid; to create something magnificent by putting together many pieces, one at a time.
Mostly, I loved the feeling of empowerment that building gave me. Folks in this industry know the satisfaction of creating something with your own hands; a feeling that can quickly become addictive.
But even more fulfilling is the power of doing something you were never expected to do.
I didn’t come by it the way many women do, with a father or brother in the industry to invite me in. I was a kid who loved to write, to create, to play. I made good grades and was involved in many extracurriculars. I got a full college scholarship and embarked on a career in journalism, which turned to a career in human resources. Nothing about my background said “future builder.”
But I was unfulfilled. I had a desire to do more, to spend my hours and days working toward a better world instead of a company’s bottom line. And I loved the moments when I was working on a remodeling project. I never felt more fulfilled than when I was building something.
Shortly before I decided to leave the corporate world, I attended a women’s event and encountered the My Intent Project. They create simple, beautiful jewelry that includes a small, metal disc stamped with one word that is meaningful to you – your intent.
The person making the bracelets asked me for my word and, without thinking, I looked at the metal disc and said, “Renovate.”
Renovate. It was my mission.
I wanted to renovate my life. I wanted a career that inspired me and allowed me to give back to the world. I wanted to help others renovate their lives. I wanted to put all my passions together to help renovate my community.
You can imagine the looks I got from family and friends when, a few weeks later, I announced that I was leaving my job to pursue a graduate degree in Social Work. Just another thing I wasn’t expected to do.
And now, Hope Renovations is operating in two locations and looking at a third, with a long-term goal of being nationwide. We have graduated more than 200 people from our program and 82% have gone into further education or jobs in construction. We have helped more than 300 seniors age in place. And we have become a force in the growing movement to bring gender equity to construction.
I am often asked what advice I would give to women in our industry. My advice is always the same: Do what you aren’t expected to do. Others will notice and that will help propel your career.
More importantly, you will prove to yourself that you are capable of anything. And that confidence can be the key that unlocks every door, the tool that fixes every problem and the puzzle piece that completes your own magnificent creation: A life built with purpose.
Nora El-Khouri Spencer is a fierce advocate for gender equity in construction and the Founder/CEO of Hope Renovations. She can be reached at nora@hoperenovations.org.
