Details

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What is your position within your company?
I am vice president of Lan-Way Roofing Co. Inc., Raleigh, N.C.

What is the most unusual roofing project you've performed?
Reroofing the mechanical room on a 30-story building. The roof was small, and you couldn't take a step without having to step over, step around or duck under something. The trash had to be bagged, lowered 16 feet to a staging area, hauled down two flights of stairs, transported via a freight elevator to the underground parking deck and carted out to the street where it was put in a trash bin. The new material was brought to the roof in the same fashion.

Why did you become a part of the roofing industry?
When I was younger, I promised myself I wouldn't get involved in this industry, but as I got older, the thought of working for and, I hoped, one day running my family's company became appealing. My father started the company 44 years ago, and I hope to make it another 44 years, at least.

What was your first roofing experience?
As a teenager, tearing off a coal tar pitch roof on a textile mill—it was horrible. I think the crew thought it would be fun to see how much pitch dust could collect on the "boss-man's son."

When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A professional soccer player or an English professor

What is the most high-tech thing in your house?
Probably my wife's cell phone.

If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?
Scotland, again

What three condiments always are in your fridge?
Sriracha hot sauce, mustard and Magic Hat #9 (does that count?)

What is your biggest pet peeve?
People who don't care about the quality of service or work they provide

What qualities do you most like in a person?
Accountability and honesty

If you could invite any three people (dead or alive) to dinner, whom would you invite and why?
My wife, Paige, because she is a good conversationalist and is consistently one of the people I enjoy being around the most. William Faulkner—I discovered Faulkner in college and greatly admire his sense of language and storytelling. And Thomas Jefferson—not simply because he was the primary author of the Declaration of Independence but because he was an intellectual and a philosopher whose thoughts on freedom of religion and public education, among others, are still relevant.

What are the most challenging aspects of your job?
Finding time to perform all my company duties and still having time to enjoy my personal life with family and friends

What is your roofing industry involvement?
My company is an NRCA member.

People would be surprised to know …
In another life, I enjoyed class 4-5 whitewater kayaking, especially on steep creeks, and spent a lot of time pursuing it.