STRONGER EMPLOYEES. STRONGER COMMUNITIES.
Stronger Communities video series – Episode 1
“Build up the people first, then the rest will come.”
RAWSO is a heavy civil contractor located in Murfreesboro, TN. Their motto, “Build Better,” is seen in all the work that they do. Schools, multi-family complexes, airports, and more: each project shows off the careful planning and effort that they pour into their work. Featured in the first installment of our Stronger Communities Series, RAWSO explains how they make an impact on their community. One of their top priorities is taking care of people, and they do that by helping build resources for communities to have lasting effects for years to come. With a team of more than 125 individuals, RAWSO is sure to get the job done, and get it done well every time. They didn’t always have such a big team, though. Not so long ago the work was started by just one man and a skid steer.
After 20+ years of dedicated service to his country in the U.S. Army, Brian Boase knew just because he was retiring from military service didn’t mean he was going to stop serving those around him. Only now, Brian had his hopes set on serving his local community in Clarksville, TN by pursuing a passion of hard work and a lot of dirt. Luckily for him, his wife, Kristy, was up for a new challenge and she brought her own expertise of landscaping and a shared love for serving others to the table. And so, MIL-SPEC Landscaping was created.
Just a Skid Steer
Dylan Stephens, founder and CEO of RAWSO Constructors, worked in construction all throughout his college career. It wasn’t until 2012, though, that he decided that the “construction as usual” mentality was not working out for him. With encouragement from his wife, he decided to begin the work of building his own company. Initially, working with just one skid steer to grade driveways on weekends, Stephens poured his time into growing his part time skid steer work into the company it is today.
Now Much More
Having grown from just one skid steer, RAWSO (a combination of Stephens’ kids’ names: Rawley and Sophi) now has expanded their fleet along with their project scope. Their work has grown from the driveways that Stephens focused on in college to so much more. In our Stronger Communities episode, they are working on a charter school. “Charter schools play a helpful role in serving the community. Being a part of this school on the groundwork, making sure that the utilities are in correctly and that the side is graded correctly, it has a lasting effect on the community in the sense that we know we are leaving an incredible product for these people and for the ownership of the school,” says Brent Fritz, Project Manager. Those who work at RAWSO recognize that their work is not just important to those they are working for, but to everyone in their community. “Everything that we do is helping our own lives around here and hopefully making a difference,” says Brett Baker, the Project Superintendent at RAWSO. Other projects that they have worked on recently include a fire department and a roadway in Murfreesboro, TN, and an airport runway in Shelbyville, TN. The lasting impact of their work will be felt for years to come.
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