As the area’s oldest, most established, locally owned and operated private commercial construction company, one of Halfacre’s foundational strengths is its strong sense of family that has been instilled in the company since it began in 1970. To this day, those family values that were established early on continue to play a big part throughout the company’s core culture.
Last month, Halfacre was pleased to welcome new employee Brooke Lawton to the team. For many, the name rang a bell instantly. Mike Lawton, superintendent of 29 years, was proud to welcome his daughter with open arms to the commercial construction company.
Brooke, a Manatee County resident, is graduating from State College of Florida next month with her associate’s degree in liberal arts and sciences, and is currently working at Halfacre Construction Company as an assistant project manager.
“My dad definitely played a role in me wanting to work in this industry as he always made it look so exciting,” she said. “I honestly never really thought that I would be working at the same company as him, but I do think that it is really cool. I mean, how many people can say that they work with one of their parents?”
And while she says one of the most rewarding aspects of construction is undoubtedly watching a project progress day by day, Brooke thoroughly enjoys how every day is completely different from the last and that things are constantly changing.
“The day is always different. It’s interesting to get to work with all of the different companies and job sites, while also seeing the progress that you’ve been a part of.”
For Brooke, her day-to-day typically includes writing subcontracts for new subcontractors, making submittals for architects to review and accepting pay applications for different companies, among other duties.
Even though she credits Halfacre Construction Company with being her first professional job, Brooke spent eight years in the service industry. When asked about the most important thing she has learned in her career so far, she mentioned being honest and hardworking.
Outside of work, you can find her exploring Florida and visiting all the natural springs, with Devil’s Den Spring being her favorite.
The Halfacre family is thrilled to welcome Brooke to the team!