Greta Bajrami -118

I want people to remember Greta Bajrami: the girl who was an immigrant, a teenage parent, the woman who made it in an industry that not many women are welcomed into. That’s what fuels me every day. -Greta Bajrami, CEO & Founder, Golden Group Roofing Welcome to the inspiring story of a girl from war torn Albania who came to the United States when she was only 9 years old. Greta and her parents settled in Worcester, Massachusetts where she enrolled in public school knowing only one word: pizza! Her mother had been a Chief ER surgeon in Albania and while Greta excelled in school, she set about re-training herself to meet rigorous U.S medical standards. The message in her home was clear: sacrifices have been made to get us here. Work hard and honor your family. At only 17, Greta and her steady boyfriend learned they were expecting a baby. They stayed in school, graduated and began their lives together. Disappointed in their daughter’s behavior, Greta’s proud parents let her know that she was on her own. In this episode, Greta doesn’t sugar coat the life of teenage parent. Determined to get their college degrees, Greta and her husband Freddie organized their classes at Worcester State College so that they could also care for their daughter. When there was no heat in the house, they covered their baby in blankets and wore extra clothes themselves. But deep down inside, Greta thought she was a loser who had let her parent’s down. At 21, she saw an ad on Craig’s List for a roofing foreman that paid $300.00 a day. She reasoned that her family desperately needed the money and that if she put her mind to it, she could learn to do the job. Greta was hired that day. After spending three years as a roofing foreman, Greta and her husband took a giant leap of faith and founded Golden Group Roofing where she has innovated the construction process, elevated the customer experience, and brought pride and dignity to her workers. Considered a trailblazer in her industry, Greta is a role model for any young woman who finds herself at a crossroads. Looking back on her life as a teen parent, Greta says “I don’t know how we did it. I think in life when we’re put in very tough circumstances, the best comes out of it. We become super-heroes. We have so much strength…we don’t even know where it came from!” #womeninconstruction #inspiringstories #storybehindhersuccess