Looking at Addiction With Compassion

By Cass Jacoby, RCS Reporter.  

Eric and Paul from Roofers in Recovery talk to RCS about creating a safe, compassionate space for those struggling with drugs and alcohol to heal.  

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

Roofers in Recovery is a nonprofit organization started by Paul and Eric after their recovery from drug and alcohol addiction. The organization is centered on helping people stabilize and improve their lives by helping connect them with treatment programs and a community of compassionate people.  

“We send people to treatment and we do all that, and that's the mission of the 501(c)(3), but at the end of the day it's about helping as many people as we can,” says Eric. He talks about their Facebook group, which is 500 strong and full of people supporting each other. “We have weekly Zoom meetings every Tuesday night at 8:00 Central, and they're a recovery meeting every Tuesday night.” 

What makes Roofers in Recovery so successful is the caring community and support they offer to those struggling with addiction, and the helping hands that pull each other up through the challenges of recovery. 

“We just facilitated a place for people to be able to feel comfortable. And they did the work,” says Eric. “But the fact that we were able to put this platform together to have somewhere that people can go to feel safe, I think that's probably what we're most proud of.” 

Eric and Paul strive to be the helping hand that put them on their path of recovery for others. They are passionate about helping people find their way back to sobriety by creating a safe space to heal.  

“If I can do it, you can do it, anybody can,” says Paul. “One of the messages we want to get out is like, hey, it's okay that you may be in this situation right now, because we were there at one point ourselves. And let us put you on the path and show you what we did and what's worked for millions of other people.” 

“That's one of the reasons that Paul and I have been very intentional about putting ourselves out there, we are showing that there doesn't have to be shame associated with it,” agrees Eric. “People are fearful to talk about it because they think that it's a weakness. And it's not, but that is why just asking for help is so hard.” 

Eric and Paul are passionate about approaching the problem of addiction with compassion. They believe in eradicating the stigma of addiction and alcoholism so that we can handle this issue head on. “A lot of people think like, oh my gosh, like, I'm just going to look away,” says Paul. “The fact of the matter is, literally everybody in the country is affected by some form of alcoholism or addiction. You know somebody, somebody that works for you, somebody in your family, one of your friends, maybe even you, but a lot of people and especially in our industry.” 

Listen to the podcast to hear more about how Eric and Paul are creating safe spaces and networks to help those struggling with addiction and alcoholism heal 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.