Don Marks

Don Marks has spent almost his entire adult working career in the ICI sector of Ontario’s roofing industry. After six years of employment with a prominent Ontario based roofing products distributor he ventured out on his own establishing Guardian Roofing Products Inc. Guardian, operating out of Toronto, was responsible for bringing Firestone Building Products into Canada and eventually became the rep/distributor for Carlisle SynTec Systems another large US based EPDM manufacturer. During those years Don’s company played a primary role in pioneering the concept of single-ply roofing in Canada. Always on the search for new trends and technologies, Don diversified the company’s product offering by importing US manufactured fibreglass roofing felts and polyisocyanurate roof insulation from the Celotex Corporation; Guardian became the first stocking distributor of “polyiso” in the province. The second half of Don’s roofing career shifted to the not-for-profit sector and in particular the management of the province’s roofing association, the Ontario Industrial Roofing Contractors Association (OIRCA). In addition to servicing the members’ needs, Don has worked toward increasing the profile of the roofing sector. Today he sits on several Boards and industry committees making sure that the needs of the members are well represented. Don is particularly proud of the Association's decision to launch a charitable foundation; aptly named Rooftop Rescue. The Foundation's mission is to provide roofing services to individuals and organizations that are deemed worthy and unable to fund roofing construction on their own.