Sara Kelly - Owner

As the youngest girl in a fourth-generation construction family, Sara Kelly saw two paths before her: try something entirely different or continue the family legacy. Throughout high school and college, she’d worked in the family business - from learning to tape to tackling payroll. She earned a BA in Business Administration, and spent time climbing the professional ladder becoming an investment client services manager, but gypsum was in her blood and construction ladders called her name. She returned to RRD and set herself to modernizing ledgers, audit management, insurance compliance, and more.

When her father retired, Sara committed to continuing the family business. Thus, Wallboard Applicators - her grandfather’s original company name - was born. Sara says, “Our ‘new’ employees are actually people we’ve worked with for decades. We want them to stay and know we appreciate them. They took a leap of faith to join us, and we make sure we take care of them.” Sara embraces the challenges of being one of just a few women-owned dry walling businesses, and she hopes that through their work with apprenticeship programs like Portland Youth Builders, they’ll get more young women involved in the trades.

Bill - Chief Estimator

Bill started in construction in high school and worked summers to help pay his way through college, gaining the hands-on experience that benefits every successful construction business. Wallboard Applicator’s Chief Estimator is known for his knowledge and accuracy as an estimator; his decades of experience on everything from large international infrastructure projects to small tenant improvement projects to hospital projects and everything in between is a proven benefit to the general contractors we work with. He brings over 30 years of construction management experience and has been responsible for all phases of the construction process including bidding, estimating, value engineering, budgeting, scheduling, contract negotiations, writing subcontracts, and managing change orders. 

Bill’s been through lots of market changes, and he responds to them professionally and quickly. Of Wallboard Applicators, he says, “We pride ourselves on our work with general contractors. From schematics to bid documents, our ability to create long-lasting, working relationships is what makes us stand out.”

Vic - Project Manager

Vic comes from a family of drywallers. He learned the ropes starting as a scrapper in high school, and paying his way through a BS in Business at Southern Oregon University by working as a hanger and finisher. With over 30 years of project management experience in the wallboard business, he’s known as the guy who builds lasting relationships with both his clients and his employees. Vic works to create an environment where every party is vested in getting the job done and creating a quality product for the client. Whether he’s meeting with his on-the-job superintendents and workers, most who joined him at Wallboard Applicators from prior companies, or having candid conversations with general contractors, Vic says, “You’re only as good as your word. You make a commitment and you follow through. Always.”

Driving around Portland, Vic’s proud to see so much of the city skyline he and his crews have been a part of building. It’s not just the structures, though, it’s the genuine relationships with the clients he values. “These are friends,” he says, “not just business relationships. This is really how it is.”