Henry Hagood

Henry T. Hagood, Jr., 69, passed away Feb. 9 at his home -- his family at his side -- after a valiant battle with cancer. The funeral will be Thursday at First Baptist Church in Trussville, where Mr. Hagood was a member. Visitation will be 10 a.m.-12 p.m. at the church with the service at 12:30 p.m. Burial will follow at Jefferson Memorial Gardens. Surviving Mr. Hagood are his loving wife Dot, their two children Jody (wife Molly), Kim (son Blake) and his brother Forest (wife Vickie). The family has asked that contributions be made in Mr. Hagood's memory to the American Cancer Society for use in kidney cancer research. Mr. Hagood was a leader in the construction industry, serving as the executive officer of the Alabama Associated General Contractors for 45 years. During that time he grew the association from a small group of contractors to an industry giant representing the entire state with assets of more than $100 million. The Alabama AGC, under Mr. Hagood's leadership, helped guide the industry through some challenging times, including labor strife in the early 1970s, contractor licensing and liability issues and workforce issues. Mr. Hagood's foresight and energy helped to ensure that Alabama has developed the skilled workers it needs for its nationally prominent construction industry and the industrial growth that has led this state into the 21st century. In the early 1980s, when insurance markets were in turmoil, the Alabama AGC formed CompTrustAGC, a self-insured workers' compensation fund, to help stabilize the market and hold prices in check for the industry. The fund has become a dominant leader in the construction industry in Alabama. Mr. Hagood also was at the forefront of the affirmative action issue, leading the Alabama AGC to form the Birmingham Construction Industry Authority in 1990. Since then - with Alabama AGC and industry support -- the BCIA has worked tirelessly to help grow the minority construction community. When Mr. Hagood, then 24, was hired to serve as executive director of the Alabama AGC in June of 1969, the association had been described as a "rather loose knit group of rather large GCs who speak with authority they don't necessarily have." Since that time, the Alabama AGC has grown to have offices in Florence, Huntsville, Birmingham, Montgomery, Mobile and Pensacola, FL with a board of directors that includes contractors from all specialties and sizes and geographic regions of Alabama and the Panhandle of Florida. Under Mr. Hagood's leadership the AGC has grown to truly represent a diverse and important industry and it truly speaks with authority. Jefferson Memorial Trussville directing.