Charles Antis for years has made charitable giving a key part of his 31-year-old roofing business.
He’s rebuilt the Ronald McDonald House Family Room at CHOC Children’s location at Mission Hospital. Antis has installed roofs for Habitat for Humanity homes in Orange County. He sits on the boards of diverse entities like Cal State Fullerton’s Center for Leadership.
Since he wasn’t able to partake this year in his normal charitable giving, he found himself involved in two new areas—food insecurity for seniors and blood drives.
He is also working with Orange County United Way Chief Executive Susan Parks to develop a plan for executives to get more involved in their communities. And his company’s contribution to the Antis Foundation jumped from $500,000 last year to $700,000 this year.
For all these reasons, Antis Roofing & Waterproofing is one of five companies recognized by the Business Journal in its inaugural Companies that Care awards.
There were a lot of “never-befores” for Antis and his company in 2020, he told the Business Journal.
“We never had a blood drive, we never delivered food before, and we didn’t have a firsthand understanding of food insecurity,” he said.
“We do today, because we are in a different world, a hyper-adaptive world.” Antis Roofing “was built around philanthropy and because of that, we can adapt our efforts quickly to what is needed now,” he said.
“We are creating the world we want to live in,” Antis said. “When we look back on 2020, we’ll remember building bridges.”
Reduced Revenue
After making trips to Hawaii and Minnesota earlier this year, Antis felt sick, wondering if he had the coronavirus, which he didn’t.
He worried about his Irvine-based Antis Roofing & Waterproofing, which works closely with homeowner associations. He decided to keep all 100 employees, even though annual sales will be about 10% lower this year, around $18 million.
“As a founder, I’d wake up in the middle of night wondering what I can do for my company,” he told the Business Journal.
“It was important to me to show up and be strong. To calm people down. I was uncertain whether our essential work would be continuing.”
New Ventures
Antis, who is well known in non-profit circles in Orange County, began talking with his friends on ways he could help the community.
“We were halted in our giving. People were like ‘what are we going to do?’”
Antis learned about food insecurity among seniors, where about 22% of OC’s population are worried about their next meal. He himself drove a truck for Second Harvest to take deliver food to seniors in Lake Forest. He recalls carrying a box to an elderly woman in a nightgown to her home.
“She said ‘thank you and bless you.’ I felt alive in the moment. Then she went down the hallway and came back with a completely flat tube of Colgate. She asked me for help to get more. There was so much more that we could do.”
Front Line Work
Antis’ favorite new charity work has been partnering with his buddy, Wing Lam, co-owner of Costa Mesa’s Wahoo’s Fish Taco chain of restaurants, and 95.5 KLOS for a program called California Love Drop, to deliver 15,000 meals to workers like police officers, EMTs and other “front line heroes.”
“When we showed up at the first hospital, the nurses just finished working a double [shift] due to an overflowing patient population. We gave them warm burritos, Monster Energy, PPE’s and little Cholula bottles with wooden caps,” Antis recalled. “They were so grateful.”
“When we showed up at a local precinct a few months later to deliver another California Love Drop, the police captain blinked back tears and said, ‘Oh my God, thank you! This is the first act of kindness we’ve felt in our precinct for a long time.’”
Blood Help
Perhaps his biggest contribution was helping raise blood.
Antis learned that blood collection plummeted when businesses and schools that typically host such drives were closed due to the pandemic. He offered his company’s facilities, which have hosted at least 20 blood drives this year, raising more than 430 units to date.
“Antis Roofing has been an incredible partner—they’re such an inspiring company,” said Becky Firey, executive director of the American Red Cross Orange County.
“When the pandemic came, they really stepped up. They supported us in so many ways,” Firey said. “Charles is an extraordinary individual, so passionate about supporting the community.”
Going for Share
While revenue is expected to decline this year, Antis is hoping to grow market share.
“When things go crazy, this is when you want to spend as a [marketer], to spend on our brand and to make sure we’re loud,” he said.
“Our company was built around philanthropy and because of that, we can adapt our efforts quickly to what is needed now.
“I am proud that our medium-sized company is in a position of leadership and positive influence.”
