Heidi J. Ellsworth Recognized with NWiR’s Inaugural W.O.R.L.D. Award

By Karen L. Edwards, RCS Editor.

The award honors a Woman of Outstanding Roofing Leadership and Distinction.

The third annual National Women in Roofing Day was held on Sunday, February 2, 2020, prior to the start of the International Roofing Expo in Dallas. The day was filled with excellent presentations from outstanding women in the roofing industry. RCS partner, Heidi J. Ellsworth kicked off the day, speaking about visualization for success.

It was an appropriate topic for her. She has visualized many things in this industry and in her own life, making them happen. From running her own business twice to do what was best for her family, to starting a national organization to empower women in the roofing industry to her most recent vision – establishing the Roofing Technology Think Tank (RT3), who knows what she will do next for this industry? I not only work with Heidi, but also consider her a close friend so trust me when I say it will be something big.

NWiR created the W.O.R.L.D. Award to honor an outstanding woman roofing professional based on:

· Commitment to the development of the roofing industry

· Perseverance against industry odds, breaking barriers (under-represented, age, disability, etc.)

· Identifying a new perspective of service/contribution to the industry

· Making a difference in respective roofing niche

Heidi was nominated several times by multiple people and found herself in a field of 37 nominations. The awards committee received the nominations only after staff had redacted the names and identifying information of the women. Shari Carlozzi, chair of the committee, shared at NWiR Day that all of the nominations that the committee reviewed were for some pretty amazing women. In fact, she said that they could only narrow it down so far and felt stuck. So, they brought in another judge. A judge from a circuit court in Ohio. After reviewing the finalists, the judge determined who the ultimate winner would be.

At the close of NWiR Day, the W.O.R.L.D. Award winner was revealed to be Heidi. Heidi shared words of thanks, remarking that “this doesn’t happen with one person, it happens with many, many, many people” and she acknowledged that hard work of the board members and other powerful women who have helped her achieve her accomplishments.

Heidi’s daughter Megan and husband Tim were in attendance to see her win the award. Even better, Megan is a singer-songwriter who was providing music throughout the event and she was able to play and sing a special song for her mom. We are so proud of Heidi!

More information on the award can be found here. Stay up-to-date with the latest industry news when you sign up for the RCS Week-in-Review e-news.