A knock at the door on Thursday morning, and a Gainesville veteran was surprised to find his street lined with Action Roofing trucks and representatives from Operation Healing Forces standing outside. His family’s home was selected to receive a new roof in celebration of Veterans Day.
Mike S. – who declined to give his last name due to the nature of his work in the U.S. National Guard – was expecting a visit from Operation Healing Forces, the Tampa-based nonprofit that worked with his Special Operations Command to identify candidates for Action Roofing’s giveaway. He was told the representatives wanted to discuss whether his roof was a good fit for replacement, but it was a ploy to reveal he had already been selected.
“The big thing with the Special Operations community is that no one’s ever going to raise their hand and say ‘I need help,’” said Phill Fong, a program manager with Operation Healing Forces, who is also a veteran himself. “It’s important to highlight veterans and that there’s always veterans in need.”
The roof on Mike’s home had not been replaced since his family moved in 10 years ago. Recently, it began to leak on one side.
“There’s a lot of water damage over on the side of the roof,” Mike said, pointing to a section with visible wood rot. “I knew I could maybe get by a little while without a new roof, but I have a deployment coming up. So, it was like, do I get it done before? Or do I run the risk of getting a new roof while I’m gone and my wife managing all of that?”
Mike said his neighborhood is a big source of support during the four months of the year that his job takes him away from his wife and toddler.
“Anytime I leave for training, anytime I leave for deployment, they’re amazing,” Mike said of his neighbors, who will check on his house or drop off food for his family. “This is one of the reasons I love my job: the sense of community given back to me when I’m spending time away from my family for them.”
He hadn’t had a chance to tell his wife about the new roof yet, amid all of the excitement on Thursday. But, as he was handed a booklet of shingle colors and other selections, he said he would wait for her to make the final choices.
