Learn how Dennis goes above and beyond in both his personal and professional life.

Debora Letelier, the operations manager at Kokua Roofing Service, nominated one of the team's service managers, Dennis Ibanez, for the AAR Contractor Spotlight! Here's what they shared:

What inspired you to nominate this person?

Dennis has seven children and three grandkids (with one on the way), he is as busy as a family man could be, yet he finds the time to step up when the company asks him to. He has taught many of the new guys to be roofers, and is very proud that one of them has become a foreman on his own within the company. Dennis is a reliable person, and the reviews speak on their own when customers tell us about their interactions with him.

How does this person go above and beyond for their customers and/or their community?

In spite of being so busy, Dennis finds the time to help out with his son's team, Keaau futbol, where he cooks, gives people rides and is ready for whatever comes his way. In the past, he played the Tahitian drums for his daughter's Tahitian halau (Hula school). Nowadays, you will find him working on weekends for customers that work during weekdays, or repairing a roof when pressed by weather.

What else would you like to share about the person you're nominating?

Dennis came to us with some rough edges and has learned to be a team player, works well with others and is great with customers. He has a great sense of humor that carries on to his crew making each work day, a fun one.

Have someone you want to spotlight? Nominate a standout employee today!

By Alec Doniger. 

A “culture of service” is essential to the success of Kokua Roofing. 

Kokua Roofing is based in Hawaii, and operates on five islands – Maui, Kauai, Oahu, Molokai and the Big Island. To celebrate being announced as the RoofersCoffeeShop® Roofer of the Month, Megan Ellsworth sat down with Ron Lloyd from Kokua Roofing to ask what sets his company apart from the rest.  

Kokua is a full-service roofing company. They do steep slope and flat roofing primarily for residential properties but for some commercial ones as well. Hawaii’s climate poses an interesting challenge for roofers. “The elements are harsh,” Ron explains. “It's hot. It's sunny for many hours each day, and the salt air is also hard, very corrosive.” 

For this reason, many Hawaii islands have a cedar and metal mandate, and because metal is uncommon in Hawaii, Kokua does a lot of cedar roof installations. They are experts when it comes to cedar roofing.

Kokua prides themselves on their culture of service. Ron says, “At the bottom of all of our signatures on our emails, it says, ‘We're not in the roofing business. We're in the service industry, and roofing just happens to be the service we provide.’” Kokua is very responsive, always returning their calls on the same day. “Nothing gets sloughed over to the next day.” One of the ways Kokua makes their service the best it can be is by utilizing EagleView technology. 

EagleView technology speeds up their process. Ron tells RoofersCoffeeShop® that he can have a roofing estimate available for his clients within the hour they request it. “Being communicative and very proactive is attractive to our customer base,” says Ron. With over 30 years of serving the Hawaiian Islands, their statewide appeal clearly shows. 

Listen to the full podcast to learn more about the excellent service Kokua Roofing provides.

About Alec   

Alec is a reporter for RoofersCoffeeShop, MetalCoffeeShop and AskARoofer. When he isn’t investigating the state of the roofing industry, you might find him playing drums with his bands in Denver.