Building Homes (and Building People Up)
Jenn Lewis of Ghigau Construction is on a mission to love the world
The Home Issue 24-25
Written By: Ashley Brown | Images: Deborah DeKoff
Heritage is the soil from which all of Jenn Lewis’ actions grow. She draws on her roots and her mother, Carol’s, powerful example to cultivate a life that is rich in kindness, service and abundance.
Reaching the place she is now took work — and guts. It began with ending a nearly two-decade-long marriage and revitalizing her career in construction management.
“I needed something to prove to myself that I am the survivor,” Jenn says. “I remember waking up at 3 a.m. and thinking, ‘I need to go back to my roots, how I was raised.’ My great-grandfather and great-grandmother were full Native Americans. My grandma married a man who was half Blackfoot and half Black … I was raised with both African and Native American traditions and beliefs.”
Jenn harnessed the strength of her Native American culture to launch a construction brand that represented her power and values. Enter Ghigau (pronounced “heh-go”) Construction.
“To me, [the word] Ghigau stands for a woman who is out there fighting while teaching the right ways of life,” Jenn explains. “The chief names this woman because she has survived war. And even though she’s been at war, in pain, and at the bottom of a hole, she still comes out with love in her heart and is honest, faithful, loyal.”
As the owner and operator of Ghigau Construction, Jenn lives up to her company’s name by practicing the highest levels of integrity. “I was raised not to violate the Earth … Don’t pluck the Earth. Don’t take things that are not yours or take things for granted. Be kind, open and honest. That’s how I run my company and my business. I treat all subs and laborers equally.”
Jenn focuses on renovations over new builds and takes pride in providing honest and accurate estimates for clients.
The Park City Area Home Builders Association is another avenue where Jenn finds right living within her occupation.
“The PCAHBA is here to help and protect contractors and subcontractors, to make sure that we still have our rights,” Jenn explains. As the association’s current president, Jenn is determined to spread hope. “If there’s any stance that I can take, it’s about providing community service … There is a community service committee that I run for the PCAHBA. And it is my passion. It is my true love.”
The list of community service projects the association participates in is staggering. The givebacks include coffee for caregivers, truck-or-treat events, community clean-ups, back-to- school supply drives, December shop-with-a-cop events, soup kitchens and book donations.
Because caring for others is so important to Jenn, she launched a charitable foundation called the Jenn-LoVe Project.
“I love my job. I think it’s great. I love the people I work with. I love my clients. But is it soup for my soul? Does it fill my cup? It does not. The community service and the volunteering fills my cup, and that’s where I want to be. With the Jenn-LoVe Project, that’s a legacy I can leave for my kids and my grandkids. It draws me back to my roots, how I was raised by my mother, Carol. Never forget to be kind, compassionate, loving, and to simply be empathetic and gentle. To raise others up and not tear them down.”
Jenn’s enthusiasm is motivation to adopt a way of life where caring for and loving others is paramount.
“You don’t have to spend any money to be kind. You don’t have to spend money to hug somebody or to give a compliment. This is free sh** that’s in you. Pass it out; pass that along. That’s what I’m going to plug. Love!”
