Heather Greenwell & Rick Heath Carlisle - Let’s Get Ready for VARP 56th Annual Summer Convention! - PODCAST TRANSCRIPTION

Editor's note: The following is the transcript of a live interview with Heather Greenwell and Rick Heath Carlisle from the Virginia Association of Roofing Professionals. You can read the interview below or listen to the podcast. 

Intro/Outro: Welcome to Roofing Road Trips with Heidi. Explore the roofing industry through the eyes of a long-term professional within the trade. Listen for insights, interviews, and exciting news in the roofing industry today.

Megan Ellsworth: Hello, everyone. My name is Megan Ellsworth, here at rooferscoffeeshop.com. We are back again with a roofing road trip, and I'm tripping over to Virginia to talk with the Virginia Association of Roofing Professionals, Heather and Rick.

Hi, how are you?

Rick Heath: Good morning. How are you?

Heather Greenwell: Good. Thank you for having us.

Megan Ellsworth: Yeah. So glad to have you here and be chatting about this great convention that's coming up.

Heather, why don't we start with you? Introduce yourself and a little bit about your role at the association.

Heather Greenwell: Okay. Well, I'm Heather Greenwell, and I am the current executive director of the Virginia Association of Roofing Professionals. I've been working with the group for 17 years now. And it's a great group of individuals made up of all different kinds of roofing professionals in Virginia. Just happy to be here.

Megan Ellsworth: That's great. 17 years! That's amazing! Wow.

Rick Heath: Yeah, she does a great job for us.

Heather Greenwell: I've known Rick that long.

Megan Ellsworth: Yeah. Rick?

Rick Heath: I'm Rick Heath. I'm an independent rep for Carlisle Roofing, and I've been a member of VARP since 2006. I am actually a past president. I was a president, our 50th president.

Megan Ellsworth: Oh, wow. Congrats!

Rick Heath: Yeah.

Megan Ellsworth: That's lucky, the big 5-0.

Rick Heath: Exactly.

Megan Ellsworth: Okay, great. And now, this is the 56th Annual Summer Convention that you guys are holding. What are some things that contractors should know before they attend this year?

Heather Greenwell: Contractors need to know that the VARP Summer Convention is not a traditional trade show or seminar in the traditional sense.

For 56 years, the VARP Summer Convention has been a vehicle for roofing professionals, contractors, suppliers, consultants, to come together once a year to celebrate accomplishments that the industry has achieved over the past year, commiserate on collective issues, and hopefully, talk about some resolution and plan for going forward. And just connect and network in a way that hopefully strengthens everyone who's attending individually, as well as the Virginia roofing industry collectively. So, to me, that's what the convention is all about.

Megan Ellsworth: That's great.

Heather Greenwell: What do you think, Rick?

Rick Heath: No, I think you've hit it on the head. It's a time to get together as a roofing community, which is going to kind of dovetail on why you should join. We can talk about best practices, what went right, what went wrong, and enjoy each other's company for a couple of days.

Megan Ellsworth: Yeah. Are there any fun events that you all hold?

Heather Greenwell: Well, the welcome reception, it's kind of indoor-outdoor, and we're at the beach this year and there's a cornhole tournament. Last year, a first-timer compared the welcome reception to a family reunion vibe because it's just a friendly, laid-back atmosphere.

And Rick's been involved a long time. We worked hard to create this atmosphere of collegiality and comradery so that business competitors can come together and hang out and enjoy each other's company and really work together for the industry.

Megan Ellsworth: Yeah. In a fun environment, getting to know each other on a more personal level. That always makes things way more fun and comfortable, especially when business is involved.

Rick Heath: Yeah, exactly. I mean, it's a lot easier to have a conversation over a cold beer than sitting in an office. It relaxes everybody.

Megan Ellsworth: Preach it. What are some classes that are going to be going on at this year's convention?

Heather Greenwell: Well, we're very excited and honored to have Lisa Sprick coming this year. She's our keynote education speaker.

The past few years, at the convention, we've moved away from offering technical education sessions that you would be able to get from your distributor or manufacturer. It's really about knowledge sharing among leaders and members of the industry.

And so, Lisa, as chairman of NRCA right now, and as her experience running a small moving company in Oregon, I'm just very excited to hear the insights that she's going to share with all the attendees this year from just that national, what's going on in the industry and what are we doing to work on these issues and what resources might be available to our attendees that they might not be aware of. And just picking her brain during our reverse round table that we got planned. She's the keynote this year.

Megan Ellsworth: That's really cool that she's also not from Virginia, too. Everyone attending the convention is most likely in the Virginia area, so getting a different perspective. That's a really good point.

You mentioned the cornhole tournament and I need to know more. Is this the first time you've held it? How long have you been doing it and when is it this year?

Rick Heath: This is our ninth year doing it, and it will be held at the welcome reception. What is that? Wednesday night?

Heather Greenwell: Wednesday, August 2nd.

Rick Heath: Yup. The president, Todd Scanlon, will do an introduction and a welcome to the 56th anniversary of the Summer Convention. And then we kind of roll right into it. We have buffet food during it, obviously, cold beers during it. And then we do the cornhole tournament, which is a lot of fun. It's friendly competition.

Heather Greenwell: And I have to give a shout-out to one of our members, April McKelvy, who was on the Summer Convention committee for many years. We were talking about ways to add a little more interest and fun to the welcome reception and she just threw out cornhole tournament off the cuff. I don't think she had any idea it would turn into one of our annual tournaments.

So yeah, like Rick said, it's very popular and everyone has a good time. And I think some people take it more seriously than others. I mean, we have families, spouses, wives, they get involved and it's just a good time.

Megan Ellsworth: That's so fun. I love cornhole, honestly. I wish I could attend and enter the tournament.

Heather Greenwell: Come on!

Megan Ellsworth: Okay.

Rick Heath: Yeah. Bring it on.

Megan Ellsworth: Twist my arm. What are some benefits to joining the Virginia Association of Roofing Professionals?

Rick Heath: All right, there's several. Kind of touching on the comradery and learning best practices from other roofers when it comes to safety, manpower, how you deal with this or that, different issues within the roofing community.

And also, we're very active on the government affairs side, so trying to stay in front of issues on the government side that either are good for roofing or construction and/or bad for roofing and construction. So we're very active there.

And also, the latest trends when it comes to either safety or execution, products, things of that nature. There's the big things.

Also, all the members of VARP are licensed certified contractors, plus suppliers like myself, but all the contractors are class A or... They're certified contractors, so it's prestigious to be a member of [inaudible 00:09:07]-

Heather Greenwell: Yeah. I would say VARP is not your typical business selling goods and services, it's the trade association for roofing and related professionals in Virginia.

And yes, we have tangible benefits for joining, such as membership discounts on our awesome events and insurance rebates through our partnership. But really, I feel like the purpose of VARP is to support and advance the roofing industry in Virginia.

I think one of the real benefits of being a part of this is knowing you are doing your part to support your own business. So, like Rick said, we're very active on government relations. Right now, we're working on, and this is going to happen, I'm confident, an easier path to solar licensing for roofing contractors.
Because right now, you have people putting solar panels on roofs and putting holes in customers' roofs and voiding their insurance. I mean their-

Rick Heath: Warranty.

Heather Greenwell: Warranty. And so, that's the kind of thing that VARP is working on. We need everybody's support and involvement to make those kinds of things happen. But that should happen in 2024. But that's what VARP's all about, is working on these common issues that benefit everyone.

Rick Heath: And the other big one that we're working on is workforce development. Excuse me. Construction in general does not have enough workers, laborers.

And so, specific to us, we are work working with the local school districts and trying to get with the guidance counselors and start to feed younger persons, males and females, to try to get them in the roofing industry. Because unfortunately, we're aging out and it's hard.

So that's a big effort that VARP has been working on for years, but we've been ramping it up and we actually hopefully have another guidance counselor event coming up in the '24, '25 school year in the Petersburg area.

Megan Ellsworth: That's great. And it's so important that kiddos know that's an option, and it's a great option. That college isn't the only way-

Rick Heath: Exactly.

Megan Ellsworth: ... or you can still go into construction and have a college degree. There's many options. It's great. That's cool that you're doing that.

Rick Heath: Exactly.

Megan Ellsworth: Why should contractors become a VARP-accredited contractor?

Heather Greenwell: I think it's just an added layer of showing your commitment to education and knowledge of what you're doing. And becoming an accredited contractor, it's very easy if you're already an active member of VARP. It's just really a matter of filling out the application and make sure you're coming to our education events.

But again, it just shows that commitment to knowledge and professionalism and expertise. And as a consumer with a roof in Virginia, I'd want an accredited contractor on my roof. So that's why.

Rick Heath: It helps separate our accredited contractors from the two guys in the pickup truck that don't have licensing, don't have insurance. Do a half-ass job, get either the deposit, which unfortunately happens, they'll get the deposit, never finish the roof to begin with, or they'll finish a roof, but just not do it in a professional manner. That helps distinguish our members and our accredited contractors from the other guys when they're making sales calls.

Megan Ellsworth: Absolutely. Since you've held this convention for over half a century, what are some things you're proud of, looking back at past Summer Conventions?

Heather Greenwell: Well, I think one thing we're very proud of is that we've kept this tradition alive for 56 years.
VARP was started by a roofing contractor, Miller Lemon, and his wife Betty, who back in 1967, they moved from North Carolina to Richmond, and realized Virginia didn't have a trade association because they were members of Carolinas Roofing and Sheet Metal Contractors Association.

And so, the two of them got together with distributors and just reached out to all the contractors in Virginia at the time and started VARP, which was originally called Virginia Association of Roofing Contractors.

And again, I mean they just created the organization to come together for mutual benefit of everyone. And to this day, 56 years, VARP is still doing that. It's one of those things where I think you have to join and get involved to really see the value of the organization. But it does a lot. We're doing a lot. That's what I'm proud of.

Megan Ellsworth: Yeah, you should be proud of that.

Heather Greenwell: Workforce development, the government relations. I think we're really benefiting the industry-

Megan Ellsworth: You are.

Rick Heath: Yeah, I agree.

Heather Greenwell: ... in Virginia.

Rick Heath: And Heather should be proud of it, because she carries 98.99% of all the weight when it comes to VARP in general and the Summer Convention-

Heather Greenwell: Team effort, team effort.

Rick Heath: Yes, it is. But the other cool thing, over the 56 years of us doing this, is how we have evolved and pivoted and adjusted, like the cornhole tournament, and adjusting how we do speakers and the layout and the formatting of it.

And because we've done that, I feel that our attendance has been good. Not that it's been good every year, because things happen. Recessions, whatever it may be. But I think our attendance the last five to 10 years has been very strong and very diverse, where it's not all the sales guys waiting to call on four roofers that show up with their families. But it's a big room of contractors and suppliers. It's the diversity and the numbers. Our numbers have been very strong, I think, what, Heather? At least the last 10 years?

Heather Greenwell: Yeah. I feel like we have a really good turnout, especially compared to how other groups are doing these days. It's been hard, especially since COVID. But I think we are offering an event that you can't really find anywhere else. I would agree with everything Rick's saying.

Rick Heath: And we also get participation from roofers throughout the state, Northern Virginia, the western part of the state, the Tidewater, Norfolk area, everybody. There's good participation throughout the whole state.

Heather Greenwell: And I do think that, just like with the national, I think... Contractors from Northern Virginia enjoy talking to the ones from the beach area and from Southwest Virginia. And you're not necessarily networking with just your direct competitors that you might see at local events and whatnot. It's a good opportunity to just really rub elbows with a lot of smart leaders in the Virginia roofing industry. That's a great benefit of attending.

Megan Ellsworth: Absolutely. I think it goes to show as well that you have contractors and roofing professionals coming from all over the state, not just one from one metropolitan area. So, good on you guys for getting everybody involved and it just shows the depth of the association.

So, last question, what are some other events VARP is hosting this year?

Heather Greenwell: Well, we have two golf tournaments that always sell out or nearly sell out. One in the spring in May, and one in the fall in October. The October event will be our next event after the convention, our next social event.

And then we have a shooting tournament that we started within the past 10 years. I think this is on its seventh or eighth year. And that sells out immediately. So if anyone's interested in going to the Sporting Clays classic...

And then we have, education-wise, we've got a webinar coming up in late September. Navigating a Drug-Free Workplace in Light of Marijuana Use Laws and Restrictions on Post-Accident Testing, because I don't know if you've heard the news, and I think it's happening everywhere, but Virginia has legalized it, so that's an issue facing our members. Philip Siegel is presenting that for us, so we really appreciate that.

Megan Ellsworth: Very cool.

Rick Heath: And touching on what Heather was saying, we do two golf tournaments. We do the fall one, which is our standard or regular that we've been doing for a long, long time, and then we started the spring one, which is a charity golf tournament. So we give probably what, between 10 and $15,000 roughly, Heather?

Heather Greenwell: Yeah. We usually give at least $15,000 every year straight to a charity. All the profit goes directly to a children's hospital charity.

Megan Ellsworth: Oh, that's great. Wow. That's not chump change, either.

Rick Heath: Exactly.

Megan Ellsworth: Wow. That's great. Well, thank you so much for chatting with me today. It's been really amazing learning about VARP. I hope to attend someday. Anything else you guys have to add about why a contractor should get involved with you all?

Rick Heath: Yeah, as we've said over the last 25 minutes, VARP has just... It's been around for 56 years and it is well-respected within the state and beyond that. We are recognized nationally.

Workforce development, there's the National Roofing Association, and we held some of the first classes of their training in Virginia. We try to always give back to the industry, whether it's safety, education, or government relations. We just try to always do our best to be on the cutting edge. So I think that's the biggest reason why you should be a member of VARP.

Heather Greenwell: Yeah. And I'll say VARP is very lucky in the sense that we've got great members, dynamic leaders, smart leaders who participate. And you are the company you keep, so if you want to be the best professional you can be, you should come hang out with the VARP members.
We've got a lot of great people involved like Rick, Sherry Miles, Scott [inaudible 00:20:53]. I don't want to leave anybody out, so I regret starting to name off names. But these people are doing a lot for the industry and running good businesses.

Megan Ellsworth: Absolutely. Yes, great. Well, thank you again. This has been a fabulous roofing road trip, and I hope to chat with you all soon at the next convention. And have fun.

Rick Heath: Yeah, hopefully you'll come play some cornhole with us.

Megan Ellsworth: I will.

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