When Hurricane Florence pummeled the Carolinas in September 2018, the devastation hit close to home for GAF, the largest maker of roofing materials in North America.
GAF operates a plant in Burgaw, N.C., a town of about 4,000 residents located 25 miles north of Wilmington, N.C. At the time, the company employed more than 200 workers at the facility, which was severely damaged by the hurricane.
“After two weeks of devastating floods, the full impact of Hurricane Florence is just now starting to be known,” said GAF President Jim Schnepper in the weeks after the disaster. “In Burgaw and throughout the Carolinas, many have still not been able to return to their homes, and some never will due to the massive destruction left in Hurricane Florence’s wake. That is why our focus is on providing sustained support, so that we can help our employees and the Burgaw community rebound and, ultimately, rebuild stronger than ever.”
Ultimately, the company gave more than $2 million in assistance for Hurricanes Florence and Michael in 2018, in the form of direct relief, financial contributions and in-kind donations of roofing materials. GAF provided enough of its shingles to replace the roofs of more than 200 homes in the most vulnerable communities. The donation included more than 300,000 square feet of shingles that were given to Good360.
Partnering with Good360, GAF has also donated shingles to help survivors rebuild homes after Hurricanes Harvey and Michael, among other disasters. The company’s long-standing commitment to disaster relief and philanthropy, both cash-based and in-kind, makes GAF one of our most important corporate donors.
Furthering establishing its philanthropic reach, the company just launched a new social impact initiative called GAF Community Matters to strengthen and support the communities where its employees live and work. The company renewed its partnerships with key nonprofit partners like Good360 as a part of this effort, committing more than $6 million in financial and in-kind donations in 2020 to create disaster resiliency, build communities and help neighbors. The commitment includes providing materials to roof over 1,500 homes.
As part of its initiative, GAF will provide roofing materials and other supplies to help Good360 address the long-term needs of communities recovering from disasters. In 2019, GAF donated 56 truckloads of roofing materials to Good360, which were distributed to approximately 20 nonprofit partners nationwide to roof more than 600 properties.
“Working with nonprofits like Good360 through our new social impact initiative is critical to delivering meaningful support across the communities where we live and work, and beyond,” said Andy Hilton, Chief Communications Officer and Head of CSR at GAF. “Good360 plays an important role in sourcing the right goods and products to the right places and people when they need them most.”
Along with Good360, GAF is also supporting Habitat for Humanity. The firm is among Habitat’s generous partners, supporting the installation of over 2,000 roofs since 2011. The GAF initiative also includes continued support for Team Rubicon, which mobilizes veterans to assist in disaster zones. To date, GAF has helped support nearly 4,000 volunteer disaster response deployments with Team Rubicon.
As the company seeks to make a bigger impact this year, GAF and Good360 remained aligned on how we approach disaster giving. GAF is among the companies that have signed our Resilient Response pledge, which encourages corporate donors to rethink disaster recovery to prevent waste and create more resilient communities.
Like Good360, GAF is committed to helping survivors to rebuild for the long-term, particularly in “low attention” disasters. For instance, an outbreak of tornadoes that hit the southeastern U.S. on March 3, 2019, didn’t get the kind of massive media coverage reserved for Category 4 or 5 hurricanes. Nonetheless, the tornado that hit Lee County in Alabama destroyed
nearly 100 homes. Nearly a year later, survivors continue to rebuild.
Working with Good360 and the Chattahoochee Fuller Center, which provides affordable housing to families in need, GAF donated enough roofing shingles to help 18 families rebuild their homes.
“We are committed to building more resilient communities, and as North America’s largest roofing manufacturer, are proud to partner with the nonprofit sector to provide active support for disaster preparedness, response and long-term recovery efforts,” Hilton said.
If you have products to donate or would like to partner with Good360 on disaster recovery, please contact Jim Alvey at jalvey@good360.org.
