Bob Dubois, or “Bob the Roofer,” fielded several calls to inspect a homeowner’s deteriorating roof and gutters.
The roof, which was held together in places with bars and random objects to prevent wild animals from crawling in, didn't get the contractors the quick insurance payout they were hoping for, leading the companies to unceremoniously abandon the job .
“If they don't see that the insurance money is there for what really needs to be done, a lot of these people just disappear,” said Dubois, the senior project manager at Recovery Roofing. “They don't make the effort to really care about the customer. They want to make money quickly with insurance.”
Dubois' first call to the house was to repair the homeowner's gutters. A year later, Dubois answered another call to inspect a hail-damaged roof. Almost everything, from the homeowner's soffit to the fascias, was falling apart, but the insurance amount wasn't enough to cover all the repairs, nor was the homeowner's savings. In June, Dubois received the homeowner's insurance documents indicating that they did not cover all aspects of the roof replacement.
Dubois knew the homeowner's reputation from her work as a popular CNA at Lutheran Hospital.
“For some reason I thought I would keep getting called back here,” Dubois said. “Sometimes people call it a wink from God. She cared for many people in their most difficult times. I thought, “Let’s see what we can do.”
Dubois got to work and called Greg Makowski, the owner of Recovery Roofing. Makowski and Dubois are old classmates who attended Wheat Ridge High School together. Makowski agreed to do the work without making a profit.
Next, Dubois reached out to other contractors who could help complete the work, including Tommy Antonopoulos, owner of American Painting. Dubois assured the other contractors involved that a community fundraiser would cover materials and labor costs to supplement the amount that insurance does not cover.
Roof to prevent animals from entering
attic. PHOTO COURTESY OF BOB DUBOIS
On the Wheat Ridge Chamber of Commerce board, Dubois brought the initiative to the chamber and they agreed to help, along with Guy Nahmiach, a local real estate agent and owner of the Neighborhood Gazette.
The fundraising campaign for the “Time to Give Back” project went public under the apt name. In the early stages, Dubois feared they wouldn't reach their fundraising goal. As word spread through the homeowner's circle, the dollars started pouring in.
“One thing is for sure: As the people who knew her found out about the fundraiser, the dollars started increasing,” Dubois said. “It was overnight.”
The fundraising campaign managed to collect the funds needed for the work. When the crew arrived on site, gutters were falling off the house and the back door of the garage was warped, plus the roof was deteriorating.
Even though the homeowner's insurance company specifically stated that it would not cover the cost of wear and tear, Dubois and the crew replaced the plywood, put on a new roof and repaired the damaged areas around the home's exterior.
After the final gutter and patch were installed to cover holes and a fresh coat of paint covered the exterior, the homeowner was speechless. Dubois told her the job was a reflection of a community that cared about her in the same way she had advocated for her over the years, he said.
The Time to Give Back team replaces the roof of a homeowner in need. Photo courtesy of Bob Dubois.
A humble recipient who nevertheless wishes to remain anonymous, Dubois assured the homeowner that she deserves the community's kindness.
“Doing things like that feels good,” Dubois said. “You're helping someone who's stuck in a difficult situation and unable to get what needs to get done. It's not always about making the dollar. Sometimes it’s about satisfying your heart, your brain, or meeting people’s needs.”
For Dubois, some jobs aren't about the insurance payout or taking a customer's last few hundred dollars.
Dubois runs a decent home office, but doesn't put much stock in shoes in the house. After all, he and his wife help raise their five grandchildren there. He looks back on his years of doing business in the community and is grateful that it has always supported his family and enabled his wife to be a homemaker and grandmother.
Dubois grew up in Wheat Ridge, attended Manning Junior High School and has always been passionate about his local community. After Covid shifted his advertising business, Dubois moved into the roofing industry, where he now works as a subcontractor.
Throughout his career in the business world, including starting a tree-cutting company, Dubois typically drove through Denver's sprawling suburbs away from his home in Wheat Ridge. Now, Dubois is happy to be able to serve the Wheat Ridge area and not get stuck in traffic.
“The story goes that there is an acre of diamonds in your own backyard,” Dubois said. “The closer to home I can do business, the better.”
Dubois is pleased with the business generated by Recovery Roofing in 2024.
“It’s been a great year,” Dubois said. “I think sometimes it fits with helping other people. You will be blessed again. That’s kind of how things work.”