Cassidy kept pushing to prove herself and became the first woman to be accepted into the Staten Island Plumber’s Union, and the first woman elected to the examining board of Plumbers Local No. 1.

Turning Passion into Purpose

Cassidy decided to use her experiences to empower young girls who, like her, lacked resources and support to “dream big and lead successful careers.” In 2017, while still working in her trade, she launched Tools & Tiaras, a nonprofit that teaches girls aged 6 to 17 construction skills through afterschool programs and camps.

“Young girls don’t have the hesitation. I figured if I could work with them, they would feel empowered,” she says. “Being empowered financially and emotionally can change a girl’s life; I’m the living, breathing proof of that.”

There is “a severe lack of funding for girls in careers that don’t fall into a preconceived idea of what girls should be,” says Tools & Tiaras board member Tia Oros Peters, CEO of the Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples. “But girls in the trades are the future. It doesn’t supplant or replace anybody; people can work alongside each other to learn and grow together. Building something that provides skills and self-esteem is good for the economy, and it’s good for families.”

Construction firms partner with Tools & Tiaras, and their employees volunteer as teachers in the program. Each girl is also paired with a mentor, creating a long-term impact. More than 250 girls attended Tools & Tiaras programs in 2025, learning welding, carpentry and electrical skills, along with important lessons on body-image confidence, self-esteem and healthy boundaries. Hundreds of other students are introduced to construction careers through Cassidy’s presentations in New York City public schools each year. “The first question they ask is ‘how much money can I make’?,” she laughs. “When I tell them, their eyes get very big.”

After working with her tools for three decades, most recently for the city Housing Authority, Cassidy is stepping away from the trade to focus solely on Tools & Tiaras. “I often wonder if I’m doing enough. Then I’ll get a text message from someone like Penelope Amaya,” says Cassidy, with pride in her voice. “She’s in college now, studying to be an architect, and has an internship lined up with a woman-owned architectural firm through her Tools & Tiaras mentor. She sends me life updates.”

For Amaya, “Tools & Tiaras showed me that women can do anything,” she says. “Since the moment I held the [welding] torch in my first class, I loved it.”

One of the program’s first students, Tanzira Rashid, is a recent graduate of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. She attributes her college and career track entirely to her Tools & Tiaras experience. Rashid stayed in touch with her mentor and is now a Kiewit field engineer. “Her parents wanted her to be a doctor, but she fell in love with construction,” Cassidy says.

“The unrelenting strength Judaline brings to this work is immense,” Oros Peters says. “Many would give up. Then again, many don’t have the vision or conviction to even try. She’s a powerhouse.”