The Tanner Roofing, Inc. team worked on more than 400 roofs in the community of Belton, Texas, since 2017.

The Church of Christ building in Belton, Texas, is just one of many local buildings with a roof installed by Tanner Roofing, Inc.

Roofing is in the Tanner blood.

Lewis Edward (Ed) Tanner got his start in roofing back in the 1950s, working on roofs in his hometown of Belton, Texas. With nothing but a pickup truck and a phone line, Ed established a reputation for solid, dependable work in the community. As his son Eddy grew up, he started helping out, working from after school until sundown. After graduation, Eddy tried his hand at a few other careers, finding success in each, but roofing called him back, and in the 1970s, he established Tanner Roofing. In the years since, the business has left behind the days of a pickup and a phone line to become a story of ongoing success and dedication in a family business that spans generations.

“We take pride in what we do,” says Gwen Tanner, Eddy’s wife. “We take pride in our name. We have cheerleading meetings with our crews, we tell them what a great job they’re doing and remind them that they’re a reflection on us. We love what we do. It’s a challenge every day.”

Since Eddy launched Belton-based Tanner Roofing, Inc., the company has grown steadily. Eddy’s determination to provide the best possible service led him to pursue special accreditation with manufacturers such as Firestone and Owens Corning.

“Our relationships with our manufacturers allow us further support and input from them,” Gwen says. “We have a commitment to promote them and they have a commitment to provide us with information and hands-on insight to better service our customers.”

In 2008, Tanner Roofing became a Firestone-preferred contractor. In 2009, Tanner Roofing became a platinum vendor for Owens Corning. Both achievements required specialized education in new products and techniques, as well as certain sales goals; earning them allows Eddy to offer better warranties to his customers. “Eddy always has an eye on how to do things better, how to improve,” Gwen says. “He’s seen so many changes in the roofing industry. We keep an old kettle in the back of the shop to remind us. We’ve gone from days of tar and gravel heating in a kettle to today’s TPO (thermoplastic olefin).”

Working in Fort Hood

Keeping up with the times and improving whenever possible have helped fuel Tanner Roofing’s growth. In 2013, the company had grown to the point that Eddy and Gwen decided they needed to incorporate.That dedication to learning new materials and techniques also helped Tanner Roofing land one of its biggest clients, winning its first contract to work on roofing the housing units of nearby Fort Hood.

“It was about five years ago we had the opportunity to bid on reroofing residential buildings in Fort Hood,” Gwen says. “They had built-up roofs at the time. We came in and showed them the value of going to a TPO roof. We even brought in Firestone executives to show them the difference. We’ve stayed busy with them ever since.” Working in Fort Hood is a different world than working in the community, according to Gwen. So much so that the company has almost created two divisions within itself—with nine of its field crew employees working on jobs within the community and another 17 working only on jobs at Fort Hood. Handling the work at Fort Hood meant purchasing additional gear and equipment, as well as learning to accommodate the additional rules and regulations required for work on a military base.

“We’ve been doing residential duplexes in Pershing Park,” says Mike Thompson, Tanner Roofing’s supervisor for Fort Hood—and husband of Eddy and Gwen’s oldest daughter, Gwenda. “We’ve been taking off old roofs and putting on new Firestone roofs. In the last two or three years, we’ve done about 300 duplexes at Fort Hood. It’s much different from working in a residential neighborhood. The military has a lot of specific regulations, and the safety regulations are much more intense.” Some of those regulations include the need for specific scaffolding, safety harnesses for all the crew and always having a supervisor on the ground.

Despite the extra effort involved, the work at Fort Hood has been an excellent match for Tanner Roofing.

“We’re very supportive of our military,” says Audra Tanner-Harvell, Eddy and Gwen’s daughter, who—along with her husband—works at the family business. “When we were awarded the contract, it was a blessing to do what we do and help the military. It’s probably the most difficult thing we do every day because of the regulations, but we’ve been doing it so long we’re pros at it. They’re part of our community, and community and family are what we’re all about.”

Part of the Community

That dedication to community and family has been instrumental in Tanner Roofing’s success and growth. The company has grown to an office staff of nine (including two of Eddy and Gwen’s daughters) and about 25 regular employees in the field. In addition to the work at Fort Hood, which varies depending on the number of projects up for bid, Tanner Roofing did more than 400 roofing jobs in the community this year, with about a 50/50 split between residential and commercial work.

“Naturally, we want to get bigger, with more work and more contracts,” Gwen says. “But we don’t want to grow too big. We like to have two sets of eyes on everything—don’t want to get big enough that things can slip through the cracks.”

“We have some of the best employees around,” Audra says. “Some of the guys have been with us for 15 years. Some are new. They work hard every day. It’s hot, it’s cold, they’re tired, but they get the job done. They’re very loyal to us, we’re very loyal to them. We say that if you stay here long enough, you become family. If not by blood, you become family in the long run.”

Gwen shares some of the reasons for the ongoing success of Tanner Roofing—Eddy’s determination, loyalty to the community and the employees, along with faith in God. She and her husband have been known to make loans to employees to help them through lean times, and they both remain very active in the community, looking for different ways they can serve.

“My husband is an amazing individual,” Gwen says. “He’s very humble. He doesn’t like accolades. He worked growing up. He helped pay bills; he helped his parents. If it’s too cold and our guys can’t work on roofs, he’ll find them something to do to make sure they can make a paycheck. Maybe he’ll offer them extra work cleaning out the shop or something like that.”

She continues, “That ethos of work is something we’re giving to our children and grandchildren. He’s never asked anyone to do anything he wouldn’t do. He won’t step on someone to get to the top. He’ll still go out to a job site. He has an attitude of gratitude and knows the hard work is paying off. Everything we have, we owe it to his work, his roofs, to God. To faith, family and friends. God wanted us to go further, and as long as we can, we’ll be here.”

Future Aspirations

Eddy and Gwen see Tanner Roofing as a multigenerational business, and are grooming their children and grandchildren to take the reins. They’ve instilled their values and their commitment to hard work in their family, and they have faith the business will be in good hands when they pass it on.

“Our prayer is that we continue through our grandchildren and their children,” Gwen says. “This is not a cushy job. You have to get your hands dirty. I love to drive through our town. I can see our work everywhere. It’s a feeling of ownership and connection to the community. I can drive past Fort Hood and see what we’ve done. It’s knowing we’ve made a difference. Eddy had a dream, and he’s made it come true. Now it’s time to dream another one—which is that our children take over. We all agree as a family that you need to be passionate about what you do, committed to what you believe and willing to do the work to achieve dreams. With strong faith and strong family you can do anything that you strive for.”

Audra says she wants her parents to stay in the business as long as they want to, but she’s committed to keeping Tanner Roofing going into a successful future. Her sister Gwenda, though she works outside the company, shares the family drive to excel and dream to continue the company.

“We’re God-first and family-oriented,” Audra says. “We’re very involved in our community. We keep our business here. We buy here. We believe in our reputation and word-of-mouth. We’re not going anywhere. We’re just going to keep doing what we’re doing. I want to keep the legacy going that my grandfather and father started.”