Building legacies, breaking biases: This contractor is laying the groundwork for change

CBC Quebec is highlighting people from the province's Black communities who are giving back, inspiring others and helping to shape our future. These are the 2024Black Changemakers.

Sophia Lundywas stunned by the words that came out of her professor's mouth.

It was 2015, and Lundywas studying construction management at a university in Idaho.She was failing oneclass, but was otherwise doing well andmotivated to continue.

Until that class's professor pulled her aside.

"He was just like, 'You are not going to make it in this field.You're a woman. You're a Black woman. You're not going to make it. You should just drop out and go do something else,'" Lundy recalls.

She cried in the bathroom for four hours, missingall her classes that day. As the only Black woman in her department andwith her professor's words echoing in her head,she doubted her chances of succeeding.

Buteverything changed when she took part in an internship with a company that saw "something special" in her. Shehelped out on a $180-million project, which opened doors to numerous other opportunities. She also placedthird in a national competition among 150 schools.

"Because of that experience, here I am years later, still in the field, still liking it and stilllooking for more opportunities despite the challenges and the barriers," she said.

Lundy, 35, is now one of the few Black women general contractors in Quebec's construction industry, balancing her role as a mother to three young children.

She says there are still barriers for Black people especially women in the field, and she's leveraging her position to help break them down.

Earthquake in Haiti shaped her path

Lundy's strongdesire to help others is the reason she entered the construction industry in the first place, straying from her originalplan to pursue economics.

Back in 2010,she found herself in her native Haitiassessing buildings for structural damage after a catastrophic earthquake struck. Her mother had urged her to come back home from New York to help out.

Armed with only an associate's degree in business administration and just 21 years old, Lundyflew back home toinspectbuildings,workwith non-governmental organizations to co-ordinate relief efforts and help families in hard-hit communities.

But it waswitnessing her families' fear of living in their own house, opting instead to sleep in tents in their backyard in case of an aftershock, that shaped her current path.

"Youdon't just build a house knowing that you didn't build a strong foundation and Haiti had that problem. No building control, noproper inspection, no building codes respected properlyto make sure that the people were safe," she said.

After her experience in Haiti, Lundy was driven to help others who were impacted by natural disasters. She volunteered in New York and Paraguay in the following years to help rebuild homes after a hurricane and flooding.

Lundy attributes her resilience and compassion for others to her mother, Josette Bousseau, who swiftly reopened herwholesale business after the earthquake in Haiti, selling essentials like rice and flour to the UN for distribution among those affected.

"She's really behind us wanting to do more. Not just for ourselves, but also for our communities," Lundy said.

"I don't care so much about changing the world, but I want to make sure what I do every day reflects what I believe in."

Tearing down barriers

Lundycame to Canada in 2019 and settled inLongueuil, Que., on Montreal's South Shore, where shegrew her family.

In 2021, shefoundedMasolu Construction with her husband,using her status as an entrepreneur to advocatefor fair opportunities for anyone who wants to pursue their dreams.

Last year, she was contacted by Liberal MNAMadwa-NikaCadet, the Official Opposition critic for labour, to help amend Bill R-20, the Act respecting labour relations, vocational training and workforce management in the construction industry, in order to create better access to opportunities for Black people and other visible minoritiesin the industry.

"Institutions here, sometimes they block you there are some bids that you'll never win as a Black entrepreneur. Some bids are just for some of the elite in the construction industry," she said.

Lundy says even when companies led by Black entrepreneurs, like hers, winprojects, they struggle to find qualified Black workers due to systemic barriers in hiring and training. She's hoping her work withCadet changes that.

Mackenson Lundy, her husband and vice-president of their construction company, says even he wouldn't be where he is without his wife's influence.

"She pushed me in a way that no one never did," he said, saying she convinced him to get into construction.

While attending college together, the couplehad the first of their three children, Sky, who is now six years old. They would take turns attending lectures with him while the other was in the lab doing more hands-on work.

"Everybody knew us as the couple with the child," Lundy laughed.

Together, the Lundys are now on their way to realizing one of their biggest dreams yet.They're workingto secure land and funding to build a $35-million social housing project that would provide 200 units for Black families in the greater Montreal area.

"It is one of our most crucial and important projects so far," she said.

Mackenson nominatedhis wifeto be a 2024 CBC Black Changemaker, saying she embodies what it means to be both a good person and a trailblazer,

"She has strength, she's very smartand I wanted other people girls like her, women like her to see that they can do the same thing as well," he said.

"She can be thevoice for other women who cannot talk."

The Black Changemakers is a special series recognizing individuals who, regardless of background or industry, are driven to create a positive impact in their community. From tackling problems to showing small gestures of kindness on a daily basis, these Changemakers are making a difference and inspiring others.Meet all the Changemakers here.

For more stories about the experiences ofBlackCanadians from anti-Blackracism to success stories within theBlackcommunity check outBeingBlackinCanada, a CBC projectBlackCanadianscan be proud of.You can read more stories here.