St. Rita of Cascia

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Project Details

Project Overview

St. Rita of Cascia High School has a special place in the hearts of the Petrick family. Both current owner Rod Petrick and his father, Ridgeworth Roofing founder Robert Petrick, graduated from the all-boys Catholic high school in southwest Chicago—Rod in 1975 and Robert in 1947.

Ridgeworth has been involved in roofing projects at the school’s old facility on 63rd Street as well as its current location on Western Avenue. In 2013, for example, Ridgeworth donated a new roof system for the McCarthy Center, St. Rita’s new student center.

Two years ago, the high school set out on a $4 million campaign, with a plan that included further upgrades to its facilities.

“St. Rita’s is a 115-year-old school in a highly competitive area for Catholic students,” explains Mike Zunica, president of St. Rita. “We’ve got tons of Catholic schools we compete with for kids. We have an  amazing campus, a spectacular campus, but our weight room was a real disconnect from what the rest of the building was…So we had this real need.”

The school planned to build a new fitness center—a 6,000-square-foot  facility that would provide members of the school community more fitness opportunities on campus. Ridgeworth Roofing offered to donate the facility’s roof, as well as a new entryway.

“Rod has always been our go-to guy whenever we have roofing issues. He’s always bled red and blue, which are St. Rita’s colors,” says Mike. “He’s always been a true Rita man to us [and] always has looked out for our best interests. Obviously he knocked it out of the park on this one because he donated the entire cost of the roof.”

Ridgeworth’s experts designed in-house an extensive tapered roofing system to accommodate a major structural steel elevation issue. The team first installed insulation that meets the IECC-code-required LTTR=30.0, followed by a Johns Manville .060 TPO roof system. Ridgeworth’s trusted subcontractor, Metal Edge, fabricated and installed all roof-related architectural sheet metal. This roof system carries a Johns Manville 20-Year Pinnacle warranty.

The St Rita campaign surpassed its goal and finished at $6.4 million, allowing the school to pay for construction projects, add to its endowment and pay off its mortgage. The new facility has received rave reviews from athletics coaches, says Mike, not only for the building itself, but for how much more they’re able to accomplish with the space it provides.

“Gifts like Rodney’s inspire others,” says Mike. “If somebody’s willing to really stick their neck out and do what he’s done for our school, I think that inspires his classmates and other people who believe in Catholic education to follow suit.”

Having known Rod for 25 years, Mike says he has complete confidence in him and his company.

“Any time Ridgeworth Roofing is involved in anything we do at St. Rita, we know that we’re going to be taken care of professionally and he’s going to be looking out for us like a member of the family. It’s always a great result.”

The Ridgeworth team is proud to be able to help continue St. Rita of Cascia High School’s mission of preparing young men for the future.