Roy Campbell may be pushing 60, but it looks like 60 might be too scared to push back.
He's the kind of roofer who won't tell his crew to tear off faster. Instead, he'll just sprint up the ladder with a shingle remover and set the pace himself. Setting a mind-boggling pace is a theme with Roy, whose company, Telge Roofing, of Cypress, Texas, recently replaced an 80-year-old VFW roof in about 14 hours, solving a problem that had festered for decades, and opening the door to a full renovation of the local landmark. That's just one reason we're calling Roy a GAF Roof Raiser.
What's surprising about Roy is that he's only been doing roofing for a relatively few years. After a diverse career that spans working in a grocery warehouse and the railroad, putting out fires, and owning multiple car dealerships, the Houston native took control of Telge Roofing in 2009. Since then, he's built it into a local Texas powerhouse, achieving GAF President's Club 2-Star status 4 years in a row, and installing, on average, more than 100 roofs a month with a crew of 113. The company, which serves a 60-mile radius around Cypress as well as Austin, maintains a Better Business Bureau rating of A+, and has been named Best Roofer in Cypress, earned Best of Living Magazine's Reader's Choice award 5 years in a row, as well as Next Door.
The secret to Telge Roofing's success is good old-fashioned commitment. Or, as Roy phrases it, "Stone-cold hustle."
"It's every day from 6:00 in the morning till 10:00 at night," he said. "The woman I date is very understanding — when a call comes in, I take it. I take every phone call seriously, whether it's a repair, a reroof, or just a question. I try to talk to everybody on a one-to-one basis. I want people to feel like they know the owner and trust that we're here before, during and after the next storm."
Honoring his hometown, Roy named his company "Telge Roofing" after the oldest road in Cypress. And he's now making that name more relevant by building a new Telge Roofing complex on an 8.1-acre Telge Road plot. The former horse training facility will feature a brand-new headquarters and warehouse.
Answering prayers is just part of the job
Telge Roofing recently helped rebuild the aging VFW Post 8905, which was built in 1940, and suffered from the ravages of 80 years of Texas sun and storms. The new post commander, Joshua Wilcox, was determined to renovate the facility, and turn it into a community center serving all the residents of Cypress. But that dream would require a full remodel from floor to roof, and the Post simply did not have the funds. Without a new roof, all the interior work they had planned would be quickly ruined by pervasive leaks.
Post Commander Wilcox said he was literally praying for divine intervention. When he turned to a local business leader — Roy Campbell — to explore the possibilities, he felt his prayers had been answered. Roy agreed to donate the roof which totaled a $23,000 project.
True to his reputation for efficiency, Roy brought a Telge Roofing crew of 22 to the post and replaced the entire 80-year-old 60-square roof, including re-decking and new ice and synthetic layer shielding over the entire roof. Finally, the rebuilt roof was topped with new Timberline® HDZ™ shingles and new ridge vents all in one day.
Reinvesting in his People
When Roy isn't sprinting to a meeting or climbing up a ladder, he likes to treat his whole crew to catered meetings where he shares not only his philosophy and plans, but the fruits of his GAF Rewards membership. His system is simple. Anyone who shows up for the meeting on time gets their name dropped into a bucket. Roy draws names and hands out between $1,800 and $2,000 in Rewards gift cards. "So, who goes into a company meeting and there's $2,000 given away just for showing up?" Roy laughed. "But the point is, the money that comes from GAF Rewards? I reinvest it back into the system for the guys."
"I'm of the generation that can appreciate the fact that there's a steamroller right behind you," he said. "Hard work, old school principles, and keeping focused, keeps you ahead of it. You can be a hero today, and a zero tomorrow, but every day is a new opportunity to be that hero and outrun that steamroller."
