What is your job at Farrell Roofing?
I work in the Operations Administration department. I’m an Assistant Secretary for AWF, Jameson, and Northwestern. I primarily work on submissions of bids, prequalifications, contracts, and subcontracts. I’m the person that crosses the T’s and dots the I’s when we have Prime bids that are submitted.
What would you name the autobiography of your life?
The Art of Self-Amusement
If you could learn to do anything, what would it be?
To be able to flap my arms and be able to fly. If we’re talking realistically, it’d be learn how to play the guitar.
What was the last experience that made you a stronger person?
Hiking the Beehive Trail in Acadia National Park. Wife and I watched so many YouTube videos prior to doing it to prepare us for what we were getting into. I’m scared of heights and I was concerned I wasn’t going to be able to do the hike based on what I had seen. When I actually hiked it, yeah there were parts of it that I got a little concerned with, mainly when I was looking back or down to make sure wife was okay, but overall my fears were unfounded. Being able to complete that hike made me feel accomplished and it got me thinking that I shouldn’t worry so much about going outside my comfort zone, and that I shouldn’t psych myself out by overthinking things.
Have you ever had something happen to you that you thought was bad but it turned out to be for the best?
Not serious thing was when wife and I were on vacation and tried to make reservations for a restaurant we really wanted to try but was told it was a 3 hour wait. We walked a little ways to a different restaurant that we didn’t plan on visiting, waited an hour, and it ended up being our favorite restaurant of our whole trip. Serious thing that I thought was bad was when I lost the job I had working at a doctor’s office in 2006. It ended up leading me to working for Farrell Roofing in 2007.
What three traits define you?
perfectionist, introverted, hungry
How do you define success?
Knowing that I did the best I could, not skating by in life, and not putting myself in a state where I have to depend on others for survival.
What is your favorite thing about working at Farrell Roofing?
I get to do my job without being constantly micro-managed.
Where are you from? Tell us about your family
I’m from a town called Westfield, famous for grape juice and beards (Welch’s and Abraham Lincoln). My stepfather’s, mom’s, and wife’s side of the family is from the Philippines. There are a few employees of the company who took classes that were taught by my mother. Wife’s great-great grandfather is a Filipino war hero from the Spanish-American war who has a street
named after him in Cebu City. Wife and I have no children but we want to have dogs. We dream of van life where we travel across the United States hiking in national parks, eating local cuisines, and drinking coffee at coffee shops.
What is your favorite hobby?
Video games (specifically JRPGs), even though I’m too busy being an adult to
spend as much time as I used to be able to playing them. I also enjoy singing, both as a Cantor in my church on Sundays and karaoke.
What are your favorite sports teams?
I don’t pay much attention to sports but when I do watch it’s pretty much football only and I watch Buffalo Bills games occasionally.
Tell us what makes your division/department special
– OpsAdmin and estimating is where it all begins, at least for Production jobs. I cannot speak for the Service side as that is not my area of expertise. Estimators bid the jobs and if successful it leads to work for every other department. Prequalifications affect our ability to even be considered for work for some of the larger companies and that also falls under OpsAdmin. OpsAdmin and what I’m involved in is the get work side of the get work/do work.
What do you want people to know about our company?
There is a dedicated team of people in the office whose jobs depend on our people out there on the roofs, and vice versa. There is more than meets the eye when it comes to our company, and it’s on all of us both individually and as a team to represent Farrell Roofing to the best of our abilities. Underneath that, we have leadership that supports us and is concerned with our well-being, both professionally and personally.
What do you love about what you do?
I love how what I do plays into my perfectionist personality, in that everything needs to be planned out and perfect before it leaves my hands. There is a lot of planning, organization, and attention to detail that is needed and that is something I’m strong with, both at work and personally. Literally one mistake can make or break being able to get a job. I like being told things like “The low bidder missed some of the forms and didn’t acknowledge the addendum, so the bid was awarded to us because you included and signed everything.” Do I miss things and make mistakes? Absolutely I do, but I almost always catch them before the bid. My job and the jobs of many others can be directly affected by what I do, and my job making an impact is another big thing I love about what I do.
