At White Castle Roofing, we run our business according to three core values: trust, longevity, and community. We’re a local, family-owned and operated company, and understand that our customers are our friends and neighbors. We try to be actively involved in the health of our community, and it’s our privilege to look for ways to serve and give back.

One of the ways we do that is through our annual Free Roof Rescue. As part of this initiative, each year we provide a free roof to three households in the Omaha or Lincoln community facing extremely difficult circumstances who desperately need a new roof.

This initiative is an extremely personal one for us. Several members of our staff each take quite a bit of time to read over each application we receive, with more than a few tears shed at some of the stories shared with us. We know it can be humbling to ask for help, and that’s something we don’t take lightly.

So when we started this initiative, we weren’t totally sure what to expect. A few applications, maybe, with the chance to meet a few new people. What we were met with was so much more: the opportunity to be a part of something that was utterly life-changing, both for the recipients AND our team.

We don’t pretend that we can change the whole world. But the best we can do is to be a friend to those in the community who need one. We can provide a roof, but we receive incredibly valuable lessons in return: lessons about love, from the parents who are trying to provide a home for their children, or children who are trying to help their aging parents; about humility, to ask for needed help; about resiliency, to keep coming back swinging when circumstances are difficult; and about community, to enter into relationships with the people we work with, seeing the way we can help meet each other’s needs.

Last winter, the Free Roof Rescue program was featured on 10/11 News. You can see that clip here. We may have provided a roof, but Karen was just as much a godsend to us as she said we were to her — which is the beauty of community.

So if you or someone you know is facing a hardship and really needs some help, please take a minute to fill out our nomination form here. The deadline for a roof this season is July 31; nominations received after that date will be included in the next season’s giveaway.

And because we can’t say it enough — we love our community, and we’re grateful for the chance to be a part of it with you.