Livin’ on the edge

“There’s something wrong with the world today
I don’t know what it is
Something’s wrong with our eyes
We’re seeing things in a different way
And God knows it ain’t His
It sure ain’t no surprise,
We’re livin’ on the edge”

—Aerosmith

It seems as though we encounter bad news nearly constantly. Read, listen or watch the news, and it’s a barrage of despair. And that’s all without even touching Twitter where a scroll can be like a version of New York’s Times Square in the 1980s before it was Disney’fied.

Crime. Tragedy. Depravity. It feels like much of what we hear going on will break your heart and callous the soul.

“There’s something wrong with the world today
The light bulb’s getting dim
There’s meltdown in the sky”

But it’s not all dim. It’s not all conflict or blood sport for sports’ sake. And I was reminded of that in a big way recently.

Each year, CNA Insurance, Chicago, partners with NRCA to select and honor roofing contracting companies that have made a difference in their local communities. The CNA/NRCA Community Involvement Award has been recognizing charitable acts for 10 years, and the winners have been amazing reminders of the human spirit’s goodness.

The companies that win don’t receive anything themselves; rather, the charity or organization they helped receives a donation from CNA … so even in winning, good continues to pay forward.

Although the winning contractors are recognized, we don’t hear as much about those companies that weren’t ultimately selected. All the submissions are tremendous and deserve to be highlighted, too, not because of a public ego boost but because in absence of talking about the good, all we’re left hearing about is the bad. And there’s a heck of a lot of good going on in the roofing industry that should be talked about!

For example, Christine Bowen and the folks at Austin Roofing and Construction, Austin, Texas, completed roughly $100,000 in free roofing work in 2022 on behalf of the Community First! Village, which helps house those who would otherwise be homeless.

And Bone Dry Roofing headquartered in Indianapolis began its annual Bone Dry Loves Pink project more than five years ago to raise money and awareness for breast cancer patients and survivors and fund research.

Springfield, Mo.-based Queen City Roofing & Contracting Co.’s CEO Larry Stock has been involved in the Leadership Springfield Program since it began in 1990. It touched him in his early life and helped him develop personal leadership skills and awareness of the importance of engaging in his community. For the past six years, he’s been paying it forward as a supporter, educator, mentor and board member.

The Beldon Group in San Antonio, a contracting company in business for more than 70 years, sought to help students in its region improve their future opportunities. The Beldon family partnered with the Alamo Colleges District and the University of Texas Health Science Center to pilot a mental health initiative to assist those who might not pursue educational opportunities otherwise because of systemic hurdles in their way.

More than 1,300 students have been served by Alamo Colleges District’s resources, and 43% of those were identified as having mental disorders but less than 5% had sought assistance. The Beldon family committed $277,440 over a period of two years; in 2022, they donated $215,000. Donations will help expand services and fund a psychiatric nurse practitioner. Other organizations have since added an additional $250,000 to the initiative in response to the Beldons’ leadership.

When the selection committee of CNA and NRCA representatives met to discuss the award submissions, several individuals commented on the tears that welled up in their eyes while reading the applications. They discussed the inspiration and pride they felt in seeing the amazing work everyday superheroes were doing to help improve their communities. But though the roster of submissions was impressive, it did not scratch the surface of all the industry does each year.

Other submissions included Cedar Peak Roofing, Myrtle Beach, S.C., kicking off an initiative to provide affordable housing in its community and Foster Contracting, Indianapolis, which is serving as the general contractor (and labor in many cases) to completely rehab a residence to provide emergency shelter to children in need.

The Korellis Roofing team based in Hammond, Ind., has been staffing a food pantry monthly since 2021. Red Pointe Roofing, Orange, Calif., helped raise $30,000 for the Alisa Ann Ruch Burn Foundation. Red Pointe Roofing has been active with the organization since 1982 helping to provide camp experiences for young burn victims. And Four Seasons Kanga Roof Co., Roseville, Mich., has raised funds and awareness for the American Cancer Society.

One unique submission came from Power Home Remodeling, Wynnewood, Pa.; the company has partnered with Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to finding cures for various forms of childhood cancer. Power Home Remodeling and its employees have supported the organization since 2011 and during that time have raised more than $6 million for the organization!

And these are contractors! The manufacturing and distribution segments give generously to so many projects they are too lengthy to even begin to list. The annual donations add up to untold millions of dollars.

And together, contractors, manufacturers and distributors give time and resources in sponsoring every freestanding Ronald McDonald House in the U.S. and help support Habitat for Humanity or Rebuilding Together. During the 2023 International Roofing Expo® in Dallas, the industry put on another successful service day with dozens of people from throughout the industry participating.

And though the daily news can be filled with nothing but dirty laundry, you can count on this great industry—filled with some of the best people we’ll ever have the chance to meet and work with—to lift us up.

We just need to remember to look for it because the good news doesn’t necessarily get the headlines they deserve.

MCKAY DANIELS is NRCA’s CEO.
mdaniels@nrca.net

This column is part of News + Views. Click here to read additional stories from this section.