ALICE, Texas — Another Coastal Bend veteran has been helped thanks to the generosity of others.
We first introduced you to Juan Manriquelast month. The roof to his Alice home had been leaking since at least Hurricane Harvey. Thanks to a generous contractor, that roof is now the least of his worries.
"That roof was horrible, so many holes, so many patches," said Paul Reuda. "I felt a veteran shouldn't be living in a condition like that."
Reuda is a project manager for Rooftop 101, a San Marcos-based roofing company which opened a Corpus Christi office earlier this year. After seeing Manrique's story, Reuda reached out to his boss, Michael Landwert.
"Knowing someone needs something like that and nobody is stepping up to do it, it was kind of a no-brainer to get it done," said Landwert.
"They really put the hard work into my house and made it more livable than what it was," said Manrique. "For that, I'm very grateful."
The leaky roof had forced Manrique and his wife of 49 years, Idalia, to live in as few rooms of their home as possible. The back end of his roof had no shingles, and there were several holes. Rooftop 101 built Manrique a new roof - free of charge.
"I don't have to live with my raincoat and umbrella by my bed," said Manrique. "I'm not going to wake up in a waterbed."
"That man will have a 50-year warranty on that roof," said Reuda.
For Reuda, the story of how Manrique cares for his wife as she goes through dialysis, was especially touching.
"I myself have been married almost 30 years, so I understand the husband-and-wife dilemma; especially when you're trying to do what you can financially for your wife, and you just can't," said Reuda.
Both Reuda and Landwert come from military families. For them, the decision to sacrifice a little profit paled in comparison to the sacrifices veterans make when they join the military.
"The sacrifices they make are so much more than what we make," said Landwert. "We think the sacrifices we make are big, but they're really not that big compared to what some of these guys do."
Landwert says giving back to people in need was something he'd wanted to do since he opened his business. Manrique says he's incredibly grateful Landwert chose him.
