Local business installs free roof for Jackson woman

JACKSON, Tenn. — Workers installed a new metal roof Thursday at a home on Highway 18 in south Jackson. It is a Christmas gift courtesy of Reed’s Metals.

“We just try to touch somebody’s heart,” Reed’s Metals Jackson Sales Manager Ricky Fisher said. “We see who needs the roof and who we can help.”

The company picked homeowner Cathy Barker out of about 100 local applicants. Fisher believes she deserves it. “She had some medical issues in the past and stuff, and she fought and overcame it,” Fisher said.

Reed’s Metals said Barker lost her husband and battled cancer. She could not be there for the install Thursday, but the company surprised her at Kroger last week, where she has worked since 2007.

“It’s really great,” Barker said. “I’ve been off work for a long time.”

Reed’s Metals said about 20 volunteers helped install the roof. Fisher said several contractors volunteered their time and brought workers with them. “We’re just trying to get her house back in shape where it won’t leak and where she can live in it,” Joe Miller, a contractor, said.

It is a labor of love for a woman who gives so much to others. “It just really touched our hearts, and we wanted to try to go the extra mile to help her,” Fisher said.

Workers also built Barker a new carport because they said the other one was not safe.

Reed’s Metals said a project like this would typically cost between $6,000 and $10,000. The company said the roof should last 40 years.