Schenectady veteran gets a new roof

Giving back to those who have given everything. That’s the focus for Owens Corning, Habitat for Humanity, and Pinnacle Roofing. They are teaming up to make sure Schenectady Veteran Maria-Lisa LaPrade, who served in the Army, has a new roof over her head.

"Her roof was obviously in very, very bad shape," said Madelyn Thorne, the executive director of Habitat for Humanity in Schenectady County. "She is a disabled veteran, honorably discharged by the U.S. Army, and she reached out to us. She couldn’t afford to have her roof replaced. Her service made us all safer in this country, so how could we not maker her home safer for her?"

The roof installation is part of the Owens Corning Roof Deployment Project, which has helped provide new roofs for veterans across the country. Habitat for Humanity helps with identifying those in need, Owens Corning provides the free material, and here in the Capital Region. Pinnacle Roofing does the free installation.

For Maria-Lisa’s roof, Pinnacle Roofing says the job will likely take a few days because it is in such bad shape, but they say jobs like this are incredibly rewarding.

"They are deeply touched that people are giving back to them after they have served our country, and it’s nice to be able to be a part of that," said Dan Jordan, the director of safety and quality control for Pinnacle Roofing.

They say the replacement couldn’t have come at a better time.

"It’s important with the price of materials. We don’t know if they are going to go up more. Some prices are coming down, but not a lot of different materials. It’s good she has this done now," he explained.

This is the fourth roof that Pinnacle Roofing has done as part of the Owens Corning Roof Deployment Project. The roofing contractor says it’s looking forward to partnering in many more.