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Professional Roofing: What is the most difficult roofing project you've performed?
Wall: A DECRA® metal roof system on a historical bungalow in Chicago. It was the first metal roof system my company had installed. Seven crew members tore off the 45-square (405-m²) existing cedar and asphalt roof system and successfully installed the new roof system.

Why did you become a roofing contractor?
I have been an exterior remodeling contractor for 28 years and recognized the opportunities available in roofing.

What was your first roofing experience?
I installed a cedar roof system in Evanston. The multileveled roof system features combinations of copper flashing and trims and many places for potential leaks.

What is your favorite item on your desk?
My desk is my favorite item. It is a 130-year-old handmade, hand-carved desk from England. I found the desk in an antique store.

What was your first job?
I was 16 years old and worked in the produce department of a Park Ridge, Ill., grocery store. I made about $1.50 per hour.

What do you consider your most rewarding experience?
When, after a heavy rain, I don't receive any callbacks or telephone calls about roof systems my company has installed or repaired.

What is your favorite vacation?
I spent three years in Italy in 1960 when I was in the U.S. Navy, so I was happy to return and spend seven days in Rome as a tourist. I admired Rome's architecture and tile roof systems.

What do you consider a waste of time?
Doing nothing.

What is your favorite stress reliever?
Exercising and being on my pontoon boat on Fox Lake in Fox Lake, Ill., and Lake Michigan.

With which famous person do you identify?
I like and admire Cary Grant because he was dapper and debonair.

What is your biggest pet peeve?
When a crew doesn't complete a job properly. It is a waste of my company's time and money and potential waste of my customer's time, as well.

What are your best and worst habits?
My best habit is my positive attitude, and my worst habit is not completing my daily tasks.

What is the most challenging aspect of your job?
Determining how to restore vintage and historical homes to their original design.

What is your organization involvement?
My company is a member of NRCA; the Chicago Dempster Association, for which I am a director; the Better Business Bureau; several Chambers of Commerce; and the Professional Remodeler's Association, for which I am a past president. I also am a former director of the Elk Grove Village, Ill., chapter of Christmas in April.

People would be surprised to know that ...
I taught ballroom dancing for two years at the Jack Martin School of Dance in Los Angeles.