Members of the Colorado Tradeswomen, a women’s committee founded in Denver, volunteered at Family Tree, a non-profit human services agency providing innovative life-changing services designed to end child abuse, domestic violence and homelessness in Wheat Ridge, Colo. 

The Colorado Tradeswomen gathered to volunteer at this nonprofit services agency, sanding and repainting closets, assembling furniture and organizing materials. 

“Serving at Family Tree is kicking off a commitment we made to ourselves as a women’s committee to do volunteering events every three months,” said Sarah Harkssen, an eight-year member and Campus Lead of UA Local 3.

The committee has been supported by Local 3 and UA Local 208 and is an example of how to connect the two straight-line Locals under a single UA banner. 

In September, Harkssen and her Colorado Tradeswomen sisters, Tiffany Hansen and Maria Hawthorne, from Local 3, and Local 208 member Robin Prince applied their trade skills to support Family Tree. 

For more than 30 years, this safe place has helped people who are experiencing or are at risk of homelessness. 

The women’s committee provides hands-on support as Family Tree expands its services throughout the Denver metropolitan area. 

During the service project, the Sisters assisted with opening a new building for women and children in at-risk environments. 

“We built bunkbeds, painted walls and repaired shelving to accelerate the opening of the new building,” Hawthorne said. “Volunteering at Family Tree helped our committee connect with the community and spread awareness about available opportunities for women in the trades.”

History of Colorado Tradeswomen 

Originally, Local 3 and Local 208 had their own women’s committees but decided to merge and unite as one as the Colorado Tradeswomen. 

The Colorado Tradeswomen has been actively supporting the local community since 2018 after members were inspired by their experiences volunteering at a women’s shelter during a previous Tradeswomen Build Nations (TWBN) Conference. 

Additionally, Local 3 Sisters Terri Murphy, Hathorne and Harkssen volunteered at the Ascension Place of Haven Housing in Minneapolis, Minn., during the 2019 TWBN Conference. 

“From fixing plumbing issues to painting and completing repairs at the shelter, we were inspired to assist the community more often,” Harkssen said. “Therefore, our public service continued by serving dinner at Angelica Willage, an intentional community and aiding in picking up litter in Denver as an organized effort.”  

Eventually, the Colorado Tradewomen grew with members from other trades, such as sheet metal workers, carpenters and electricians. The Colorado Tradeswomen affiliates include Local 3, Local 208, Local 58 and Local 145. 

The Colorado Tradeswomen currently has 10 members who attend regularly, with some participating virtually. 

“Our mission is all about uplifting other women, recruiting more Sisters and retaining more women in the trades,” Harkssen said. 

Not only does the committee promote bridges between other Sisters and Locals, but it also publicizes the trades within the community. 

“Volunteering gives us an opportunity to promote both the trades and the UA,” Hawthorne said. “The fact that the public sees us doing hands-on, honorary work by putting stuff together in a building justifies that the trades are a reasonable career to consider.” 

With the help of Local 208 Business Manager Gary Arnold and former Local 3 Business Manager Sean Wyatt, the Colorado Tradeswomen hit the ground running. 

The business managers showed their support through advertising on social media, funding activities, scheduling yearly recruitment events, attending TWBN and providing material resources such as banners and shirts. 

The committee receives additional support and encouragement from other UA Leadership, such as Local 3 Training Coordinator Johnnie Norris and current Local 3 Business Manager Sonny Welch. 

“Having leadership involved is great because their attendance has been a huge reality check of the things that women have to address while working in the trades, which may have been unforeseen,” Hawthorne said. “I know the response we had last year was that the experience of attending the women’s committee events has been eye-opening.”