Growing up in the Bronx, Shtira Daniels was always the person her family turned to when something needed to be built.

Even as a preteen, her father would hand her furniture to assemble. Later, in high school, she gravitated toward woodworking classes. She loved working with her hands and figuring out how things fit together.

She just never imagined construction could become her career.

"You kind of grow up thinking that girls are supposed to do certain jobs and boys are supposed to do certain jobs," Daniels said. "That wasn't a job that girls do."

Instead, Daniels built a career in childcare and hair braiding, becoming certified in both fields and eventually starting businesses of her own. She enjoyed the work, but during the COVID-19 pandemic, a friend's sister told her about the Nontraditional Employment for Women (NEW) program, which prepares women for careers in the skilled trades.

"It sounded absolutely perfect," Daniels said. "Which also meant it was probably not true."

It was.

Through NEW, Daniels received classroom instruction, math training, strength conditioning, and hands-on experience designed to prepare women for careers in traditionally male-dominated trades. She later completed the BuildingWorks pre-apprenticeship program, which provided additional hands-on training and helped her earn a place in the New York City District Council of Carpenters apprenticeship. Four years later, she is now a member of Local 157 and was one of 133 graduates recognized at the NYCDCC Apprentice Graduation Ceremony this spring.

During her apprenticeship, Daniels worked on everything from luxury apartment buildings and office interiors to heavy construction projects repairing New York City's transit system.

"I've done everything from pouring concrete to putting up walls and framing and putting in kitchens and doors and finish work," she said. "I'm grateful to be so well-rounded in such an early stage in my life."

She credits supervisors who recognized her work ethic and gave her opportunities to tackle new challenges rather than keeping her in one area of the trade.

"I've been lucky to work hard and people see that I work hard and they put me to work," she said.

Today, Daniels says she's found the career she'll have for the rest of her life.

"This is exactly where I want to be," she said. "My local will be here for the rest of my life, and I know it. So I'm going to be here to support them until I can't anymore."

The apprenticeship didn't just teach Daniels a trade. It gave her a steady paycheck, health insurance, retirement benefits, and the kind of financial stability that had once made it difficult to imagine staying in New York long term.

Daniels is the mother of three children—ages 8, 13, and 22—and says joining the union has transformed life for her entire family.

"The union gives me the opportunity to do every single thing that my kids ever wanted to do," she said. "There's no reason that I ever have to tell them no. And that is absolutely because of my union."

For Daniels, perhaps the biggest change isn't the buildings she's helping construct.

It's what her children now believe is possible.

Her youngest daughter now dreams of a career operating heavy equipment and excavators—something Daniels never imagined for herself when she was growing up.

"I love that she's not like I was," Daniels said. "She didn't grow up thinking, 'This is not something that I can do.' She sees it because her mom does it."

"I think it's the coolest thing in the world," she added.