The Gift of Sobriety

By Cass Jacoby, RCS Reporter.  

RCS looks into one of the most caring and supporting communities for roofers struggling with addiction: Roofers in Recovery. 

In Season 4, Episode 22 of the Roofing Road Trips podcast Heidi J. Ellsworth meets with Eric Oberembt and Paul Reed of Roofers in Recovery to talk about giving back to the community.  

Roofers in Recovery is a nonprofit organization focused on empowering people who want help stabilizing and improving their lives through treatment programs with an amazing staff and community of compassionate people. 

“Roofers in Recovery is a 501C3 nonprofit that Eric and I and my wife Kimberly started a few years ago,” says Paul. “The reason we did that, both Eric and I are in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction. I'm coming up on 15 years in August from a meth addiction. And I believe Eric is around 12 or 13.”  

Paul and Eric are now happily sober. With their businesses and health doing so well, the two asked themselves how they could really give back to the industry. “We came up with the idea that I would throw some money and Eric would throw some money and we'd pull it together and let's send one guy in the roofing industry to rehab and, that's where Roofers in Recovery started,” says Paul.  

Roofers in Recovery offers a caring community and support as those struggling with addiction help one another through the challenges of recovery, and celebrate the joys of healthy, sober living.  

“The gift that sobriety gave me and Paul, that gave us the opportunity to become who we are today,” says Eric. "We had that phone call a few years back and said, ‘Hey, we got to figure out how to be able to give that gift to other people in the industry that want it and that need it.’ And it really became something special.” 

Today, Roofers in Recovery is a place where roofers can celebrate their recovery from drugs and alcohol, share their experience of how to get sober and promote staying sober. “We both know that at some point in our recovery someone stepped out and gave us a hand and helped us and put us on the right path,” says Paul. “That's what we want to do.” 

Listen to the podcast to hear the rest of Eric and Paul’s inspirational story and to learn more about the good work Roofers in Recovery is doing.  

Learn more about Roofers In Recovery in their RoofersCoffeeShop® Directory or visit roofersinrecovery.org