Luther Barringer, RAND Construction, Richfield, NC

Luther began his career in 1941 by doing custom grading, clearing land and building ponds for local farmers for $3.00 an hour. As World War II ended, he and his brother Jay formed a company called Barringer Brothers, which allowed them to start bidding on improvements to local roads under the Farm to Market Roads Program. In 1958, a local contractor approached the brothers about starting a utility company, RAND Construction, Company, Inc., which the brothers later purchased in 1964.

The “Chief” as Luther was called, was active in several industry associations throughout his construction career, including Carolinas AGC and National Utility Contractors Association (NUCA). Also very active in his community, he helped design and install his town of Richfield’s sewer system.

In the late 70’s and early 80’s RAND Construction weathered the storms of the big rigging scandals, labor shortages, fuel prices, and unfortunately, Jay’s passing. Luther, then semi-retired, ultimately left the operation of the company to his son Brad, who then closed RAND in order to fully incorporate his father’s passion and knowledge of the industry into his new business. Luther’s legacy continues to live on through his son and grandsons’ love of the utility contracting industry. 

James Braswell, Langston Construction Co. of Piedmont LLC, Piedmont, SC

James graduated from Clemson University in 1975 with a degree in Building Construction. While a student at Clemson he worked part time as a laborer, carpenter helper and carpenter for Foothills Real Estate and at Duke Energy’s Oconee Nuclear Power Station. After graduation James joined Terry Construction Company in Greenville, SC as Safety Director. While there, he helped implement the S-U-P-E-R Performance Program which emphasized productivity, safety and quality. James then moved to Bailey-Brazell Construction as a Project Manager, and then worked for Morris Construction before settling in at Langston Construction in 1986.

At Langston Construction, James used the knowledge he gained in his previous roles to eventually become President and CEO of Langston Construction. During his career, James has served on numerous CAGC committees, and most notably he served as the 2015 CAGC Board Chair. Nationally, he is also an AGC of America Certified Master Commercial Carpenter, an NCCER Certified Instructor, an AGC of America Lean Education Program Instructor and a LEED Accredited Professional. He is the only AGC of America Certificate of Management – Lean Construction holder in South Carolina. James continues to leave his mark on the construction industry both locally and nationally.

Steve Gennett, Carolinas AGC, Charlotte, NC

Steve dedicated his 43-year career to serving the construction industry through his commitment to AGC. He served as Executive Director of the Louisville AGC and as Executive Vice President of the Kentucky AGC from 1965 to 1986. In 1986, Steve assumed the position of President and CEO at Carolinas AGC, growing the Carolinas chapter into the largest in the nation.

Working passionately with members to tackle industry issues, Steve served as a liaison between the contractor world and outside agencies. He never backed away from industry challenges and enjoyed working with CAGC leaders to become an association on the cutting edge as technology began to creep into our industry. Under Steve’s leadership, Carolinas AGC was the chapter that all other AGC chapters looked up to.

John David Griffith, Trident Construction, Charleston, SC

After carrying on the Clemson family tradition, John David started his construction career with H. G. Reynolds, where he worked for a decade and remains close friends with the Reynolds family.  

He then joined his Clemson Sigma Nu brother, Robbie Fairey, as his partner in Trident Construction. For over 34 years, John David and Robbie have worked together to turn a start-up company into the largest locally owned and operated construction company in Charleston. Among Trident’s 75-plus employees, John David is a mentor and advisor to everyone. Whether he’s managing the workforce for each job or teaching an employee how to jack-up a failing pier on a dock, John David is always the “go to” guy. One of Trident’s subcontractors went so far as to say that John David, through his generosity and fairness, is the reason his company survived through his early years in business. Best described as a friend, family man, role model, community and business leader, and longtime advocate of Carolinas AGC, John David is most proud to be a Clemson Tiger and can always be found decked out in orange at all the CAGC events!

Cleve Paul, D.S. Simmons, Inc., Goldsboro, NC

Cleve began his construction career at R. N. Rouse & Co., where he served as estimator, project-manager, scheduler, risk manager, vice president, president, and then CEO and owner of the company. In 2013, Cleve made the extremely difficult decision to close the company; yet true to Cleve’s character, his main concern was finding a company that would acquire his employees and complete his remaining projects with the same standard of quality. His mission was accomplished when he handed the reigns to Monteith Construction.

During his career, Cleve served and often chaired countless local, regional and state organizations and boards. He served on numerous Carolinas AGC and AGC of America boards and committees, including chairing the CAGC Board of Directors in 2014. Among many other honors, Cleve has been a CAGC Pinnacle Award winner and an inductee to the Longleaf Order of the Pine. 

Ron Shaw, Lee Construction Company of the Carolinas, Inc., Pineville, NC

In 1980, Ron entered the construction industry as a surveyor for B. F. Diamond Construction Company. After entering an engineering training program, he became a carpenter and pile driver in Virginia and Maryland. He was promoted to project engineer for the US 421 Bridge over the Cape Fear River and worked on several NCDOT projects. In 1995, Ron become operations manager at Lee Construction Company, and after working his way up he was named president in 2004. As a very active member in Carolinas AGC, Ron has served on multiple committees, including the PR Committee, North Carolina Bridge Committee and North and South Carolina Joint cooperative committees, South Carolina Bridge Committee and the South Carolina Design Build Committee. Ron served on the CAGC Board of Directors three times.  

Ron currently serves on the Industry Advisory Board for the Construction Management and Civil Engineering Technology program at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.  He is also an advisory board member for the CTE Academy for Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools at Hopewell High School which is working to recruit high school students for construction careers.