Buffalo Blueprint Part II | The Fabulous 5 and their superpowers help bring Highmark Stadium to life

Aug 13, 2026 at 08:00 AM

Senior Team Reporter

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A three-part series diving into the stories behind the construction of Highmark Stadium. The "Fabulous 5" make up a group of women who had a hand almost every part of the construction project:

The natural green grass of Highmark Stadium glows against the gray backdrop of the sky as light rain falls, watering the soon-to-be playing surface. On this particular day, it's the end of June in Buffalo, less than three months from the regular season.

Something big is happening at the stadium.

"Oh my, no way! Look at what they're doing," Vice President and Construction Executive for Turner Construction Sadaf Khattak said in excitement. "They're putting up graphics and stats. They're testing the video board!"

The video board illuminates the stadium, wiping away the gloomy skies. Different images and numbers flash across the screen.

"I like that score," Project Administrator and Assistant Engineer Linda Herr said as she looked at the board which had a test scorebug displaying the Bills winning.

Khattak, Herr and three others, aka "The Fabulous 5", are getting rained on, but they don't mind. Just like the video board, they also radiate with excitement as they watch another piece of Highmark Stadium move toward completion.

THE BOND

The Fabulous 5 make up a group of five women working on the new stadium project. They all work in different roles, but over the past three years they've crossed paths in more ways than one can count. Those interactions have formed a tight-knit bond between the group.

"We've become friends through trial and error," Project Engineer Amber Gorzynski laughed. I'm kidding. But really, we've watched each other grow. That's been the coolest part."

"We've had a lot of challenges that we've been through together, and that's bonded us," Project Manager Teaghan Stack shared.

The Fabulous Five, June 25, 2026 at Highmark Stadium.

"I think at any given point each of us have sat in each other's office, closed the door and said, 'I just need 10 minutes to decompress,'" Senior Project Manager Meral Kanik said.

They were strangers to each other when the project started. But now, a couple months before the project is complete, they're like longtime friends.

Khattak serves as a head engineer for the new stadium project. She's a seasoned vet who has lived all over the country building sports stadiums. Khattak's superpower is problem solving.

"My job is all about ensuring that everyone has everything they need – the tools, the materials, the direction, answering questions and more," Khattak explained. "We keep this machine going, so a lot of it is more future thinking. You're thinking about what's happening three months down the road, three weeks down the road."

Herr's job is different every day, as she interacts with just about everyone on the site. Her superpower is organization.

"It's a lot of moving paper, making sure that things are in the places they need to be for whoever needs them to be there," Herr said. "It's managing schedules from the executive team, managing expense reports from the executive team, making sure the superintendents have what they need to do their jobs, managing the badging and certifications for insurance, so it's different every day."

Gorzynski's job might look overwhelming to many, as it comes with a lot of responsibility and trust. Her superpower is attention to detail.

"I make sure the 60 plus trade partners, contractors and subcontractors get paid," Gorzynski said. "So, attention to detail is very important."

Video Board Test, August 10, 2025 at the Highmark Stadium. Video Board Test, May 5, 2026 at Highmark Stadium.

Kanik and Stack are project managers. They've seen many different parts of Highmark Stadium come together while ensuring the work is done the right way. Their superpower is being a jack of all trades.

"I've mainly been working with the carpenters," Kanik explained. "So, I'm anywhere from being in the field club, all the way up to the canopy, concentrating on the studs and structure, drywall, things of that nature."

"I'm a project manager for building enclosure, roofing, waterproofing, expansion joints, elevators, escalators and masonry," Stack said. "So, overseeing those trades, making sure engineering is done, materials are on site and ready for our supers to get things installed, and then helping out our cost team."

BREAKING BARRIERS

Between the five women, they've seen just about every face and name associated with building Highmark Stadium.

"I think at some point we've collectively interacted with everyone on the stadium project," Herr said. "That's more than 1,500 people. The work we do touches so many different people."

The group has been proud to see more women on the job site than they've noticed on past projects, especially knowing construction is still a male-dominated field.

"This is the most women I've seen on the job site before," Kanik said. "I think there was a crew of around eight masons, which is not common. That was awesome."

"We had, I think, two women who were crane operators," Herr said. "There's also a few driving the dump trucks. Lots of them wear pink hard hats. You see that pink in the distance and go, 'Oh yeah!'"

They're also thankful for the opportunities this project has created for women. As the biggest construction project Western New York has ever seen, it's created countless possibilities for many in the industry.

"It's given women in Western New York in the trades an opportunity to be part of this epic project," Gorzynski shared. "It has helped them grow as well because in the past there were not projects of this size."

To support the women on the site and show their appreciation, the executives recognized Women in Construction Week during Women's History Month each year of the project.

"The first year it crept up on us because the hole was being dug, there was a lot going on, so there were about 35 people there," Khattak said. "The next year it grew to over 100 because we wanted something more, and there were more trades on board. This year, our last year, we had to go out with a bang. I think we had around 160 people in attendance."

"It's coming and we're getting there," Herr said of seeing an influx of women in the industry. "I think that's cool. Even look on the Bills side, there are plenty of women helping with the construction project."

The women involved in the project have played integral roles in helping build the new stadium. As they've helped it come together piece by piece, they can't wait to deliver the space to its fans.

"A promise made is a promise delivered," Khattak said. "I love doing this work because your clients are three different people – the team, the architect and the public. That's what gives me the rush. At ribbon cutting, just watching people enjoy the space was so awesome. Opening day is my favorite day. I love watching people getting to enjoy something."

THE MEMORIES THEY'LL TAKE WITH THEM

As the stadium receives its final touches and gets ready for its patrons, the group of five women don't just see a finished product. They see the stories that make up the years of passionate work it took to make it all happen.

"Watching the speakers go up was wild. Seeing the workers go up the ropes from the field and climbing to the canopy," Herr described. "They were in the harnesses for 12 hours a day. Standing on the ground looking up, you just thought, this is so crazy."

"I think the bowl seating is so cool, watching it come together with all its colors," Gorzynski said. "I think Bills Mafia is going to love how the noise and energy just hold in this place. At ribbon cutting 40 of us took at picture and said, 'Go Bills,' the reverb was chilling."

Kanik, who is from the area and a passionate Bills fan, was working for Gilbane in Washington D.C. when she heard of the stadium project. She was ecstatic to get the opportunity to move close to home and work on her team's stadium. Now, she's feeling wide-ranging emotions as the project winds down and football games get closer.

"Home opener, I'm going to be a mess," Kanik said. "I'm going to be crying. I'm going to look at that and say, 'I remember helping with this and that.' I will be a kid in a candy shop. It's also hard to think about what's next. For, me this is one of the pinnacle parts in my career."

The rest of the group agrees, it's a bittersweet feeling. They're elated to see the stadium buzzing with Bills Mafia and sad to see the project come to a close.

"This stadium project felt like our baby," Herr explained. "We've watched this thing grow. It's like watching your child grow up. They have their first birthday, then graduate from high school and college. It's time. I'm like, 'Oh no. It's not time.' It can't be time yet, but it is. Fans need to get in here and experience what we have experienced all this time."

As rooms and spaces in Highmark Stadium begin to fill with Bills staff members instead of construction workers with countdown to kick off on, The Fabulous 5 walk away from their home over the last few years with a whole lot. What they gained most, along with many others, are friendships that will continue.

"There are things that transcend a project and a building. It's the relationships you make, those last beyond being on the job site together," Khattak said with a smile. "I hope I'll see some of these people on another job site. Just seeing people form relationships across different entities, that's what I hope survives and continues."

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, August 23, 2024.

Ben Green/Buffalo Bills

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, December 07, 2022.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, December 07, 2022.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, 2023.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, 2023.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, June 05, 2023.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, June 05, 2023.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, June 05, 2023.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, June 05, 2023.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, June 05, 2023.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, October 31, 2023.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, October 31, 2023.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, October 31, 2023.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, November 02, 2023.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, November 02, 2023.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, November 20, 2023.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, November 20, 2023.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, November 20, 2023.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, November 20, 2023.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, November 20, 2023.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, November 20, 2023.

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Behind-the-scenes photos of Highmark Stadium construction, November 20, 2023.

Bill Wippert/Buffalo Bills