The Texas Construction News staff write
FORT WORTH — Originally, Tammy Crooks had no intention of entering the construction industry. After graduating college, she headed straight for law school, planning a career in the courtroom. But nearly three decades later, Crooks is a fixture in the Texas construction scene, proving that the road less traveled often leads to the most resilience.
Now a construction manager with Byrne Construction Services in Fort Worth, Crooks is preparing to bring her career full circle. She is about to shift into a new role in risk management, where she will finally utilize her legal background to negotiate contracts, work with bonding companies, and navigate terms for the company.
It is a milestone in a career defined by unexpected pivots and “grit plus tenacity.”
A change of plans
Crooks’ journey into the trades began during her first year of law school when she met her future husband, Jack McLure, who owned a construction company.
“I realized I didn’t want to be in an office all day,” Crooks said.
She left her legal studies to jump into the world of construction with McLure. Together, they specialized in design-build projects, completing work for various clients, including several exhibits for the Dallas Zoo. Crooks learned the business from the ground up, mastering AutoCAD, scheduling, and project management.
Tragedy and support
After more than 20 years of working side-by-side, tragedy struck when McLure died unexpectedly. The loss left Crooks in a personal and professional tailspin.
“I had to learn how to function again, not just in my personal life but in my professional life,” she said. “Jack and I had worked side by side for twenty-some years. Now all of a sudden my partner was not there. I had to try and pick up the pieces and move on. That was the one time in my life where I really thought, ‘I can’t do this. I can’t fathom going on without him.’”
At her lowest point, she found salvation in an unexpected source: the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC).
“I’ll tell you what saved me, it was NAWIC,” Crooks said. “The outpouring of love and support I got from people I had never even met was amazing. It was so profound that even my family noticed… Their support strengthened me personally because I now knew I had a fallback.”
Today, Crooks gives back to that same community as the South Central Region Director for NAWIC, a role fully supported by Byrne Construction Services.
Redefining toughness
Reflecting on 28 years in the industry, Crooks admits that being a woman in construction came with steep challenges. Early in her career, she felt she had to be “tough, forceful and aggressive” to be heard and overcome stereotypes.
While she believes the industry has progressed—noting that women are no longer scarce on job sites—she maintains that toughness is still required.
“Grit plus tenacity equals toughness,” she explained. “Rolling with the punches. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off and move on. That’s when you know you’re tough.”
She recalls one instance while building a county courthouse where a construction overseer criticized her team’s workmanship. Crooks challenged him to show her exactly where the errors were. When he couldn’t, she made her position clear: “I wasn’t standing up for myself, I was standing up for my people.”
Advice for the next generation
As she prepares for her transition into risk management, Crooks focuses on mentoring younger professionals. Her advice emphasizes adaptability over simple resilience and encourages women to become experts in their field.
“As women we can level the playing field by being sponges and becoming experts so that even if you’re questioned you know the answers,” she said. “I try to teach younger people if you want to do something, do it well. Don’t be as good as me, be better than me.”
Editor’s Note: This story is based on a feature published by the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC). You can read the original article at: https://nawic.org/legally-tough-ill-tell-you-what-saved-me-it-was-nawic.
