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About

Our Team

We practice an innovative, transformative workforce development model. But it depends on an exceptional team to deliver it.

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Leadership

Marc Soberano Avatar

Marc Soberano

Founder, Executive Director

Marc founded Building Up because he felt it needed to exist. He believes that the role of a social enterprise is to connect people who want to make socially-minded purchasing decisions with the opportunity to do so.

Marc graduated from the Richard Ivey School of Business, canoed across Canada, and understands the untapped transformative powers of construction. He combines lessons learned from life in the woods with a people-first outlook to lead this organization toward its vision.

Tarah Clark Avatar

Tarah Clark

Partner, COO

Tarah graduated from Princeton University with a BA in Economics and Finance. She spent the first ten years of her career working in finance, where she became a VP for Deutsche Bank’s investment bank and a venture capital partner and investor.

Tarah joined Building Up as a volunteer in 2016, purposed with leveraging the power of business to address social, economic and environmental issues. Tarah passionately believes that Social Enterprise is the most impactful tool to build a better future.

Adam Zweig Avatar

Adam Zweig

Director of Social Enterprise

Adam’s role includes keeping the project pipeline plentiful and ensuring the organization has sufficient revenue. The more work, the more people BU can train, and the more people BU can train, the more people end up in careers.

Adam also oversees miscellaneous projects, all still with the goal of getting the most people working.

Obioma Dike Avatar

Obioma Dike

Director of Career Case Management

Obioma – Obi for short– joined BU in 2021 as the Alumni Program PM before stepping into the Director of Case Management role. Her team is responsible for ensuring participants are successful along their apprenticeship pathway.

Obi discovered her passion for people and community in the financial service and non-profit sectors after overcoming the barriers faced by newcomers to Canada.

Diego Savone Avatar

Diego Savone

Director of Labour Division

Diego manages labour contracts and develops new labour opportunities.

He and his partner Melisa have two daughters, Riley and Esther, and a furry daughter, our dog Ophelia.

He loves camping, getting away into the deep woods, and as a true Argentinean, he loves his soccer and BBQs!

Mason McColl Avatar

Mason McColl

Program Director

For the past few years I have been doing building and property maintenance on a 100 year-old building in midtown – my background is as a (mostly) residential painter and doing building & property maintenance in residential, commercial and institutional settings.

I have done a lot of different types of work (trades and non-trades), and my favourite work has been in adult education; I have worked as an educator in math and the trades, and also around mental health and wellness, sexual health, safer drug use, anti-oppression & anti-racism, alternatives to the justice system, and lots more.

Collective Expertise

The Building Up team is a dynamic blend of construction industry professionals, social enterprise leaders, and a diverse array of talented individuals, including social workers, tradespeople, case managers, educators, coaches, and program experts. This collective expertise means an uncommon range of skills informs our program design and service delivery. We’re united by a shared commitment to effecting positive change in our community by breaking the cycle of poverty and assisting individuals with significant employment barriers in building successful careers in the trades.

Program Team
Marisa Da Ros Avatar

Marisa Da Ros

Math Teacher | Toronto Catholic District School Board
Allison Roth Avatar

Allison Roth

Trade Instructor
Nilani Selliah Avatar

Nilani Selliah

Program Coordinator
Mason McColl Avatar

Mason McColl

Program Director
Case Management
Cyera Washington Avatar

Cyera Washington

Career Case Manager
Jaleal Wright Avatar

Jaleal Wright

Career Case Manager
Shanice Francis Avatar

Shanice Francis

Manager of Career Case Management
Gayla Forer Avatar

Gayla Forer

Counsellor Therapist
Tara Natale Avatar

Tara Natale

Financial Coach
Ralph Lee Avatar

Ralph Lee

Alumni Career Coach
Kerrie Ferris Avatar

Kerrie Ferris

Career Case Manager
Tamara Bailey Avatar

Tamara Bailey

Project Manager | Alumni Program
Kevin Klayman Avatar

Kevin Klayman

Special Projects Manager
Obioma Dike Avatar

Obioma Dike

Director of Career Case Management
Social Enterprise
Luis Eder Avatar

Luis Eder

Site Supervisor | Contracting Division
Leanne Cortez Avatar

Leanne Cortez

Insulation & Labour Supervisor
Amin Komeili Avatar

Amin Komeili

Project Manager | Contracting Division
Alfredo Neira Martinez Avatar

Alfredo Neira Martinez

Site Supervisor | Labour Division
Binyam Tewolde Avatar

Binyam Tewolde

Site Supervisor | Labour Division
Kaido Nipernado Avatar

Kaido Nipernado

Site Supervisor | Contracting Division
Esker Gaffney-Knox Avatar

Esker Gaffney-Knox

Site Supervisor | Contracting Division
Anthony Pesce Avatar

Anthony Pesce

Site Supervisor | Contracting Division
Brian Shute Avatar

Brian Shute

Site Supervisor | Contracting Division
Jim Peterson Avatar

Jim Peterson

Site Supervisor | Labour Division
Peter Clarkson Avatar

Peter Clarkson

Production Manager | Contracting Division
Tim Zubek Avatar

Tim Zubek

Site Supervisor | Contracting Division
Jules Paula Avatar

Jules Paula

Operations Manager | Labour Division
Olawuyi Anthonia Olubunmi Avatar

Olawuyi Anthonia Olubunmi

Site Supervisor | Labour Division
Lorena Howse Avatar

Lorena Howse

Lead Supervisor | Labour Division
Okeremute Don Iruvwe Avatar

Okeremute Don Iruvwe

Site Supervisor | Labour Division
Andrew Bellissimo Avatar

Andrew Bellissimo

Data Admin | Labour Division
Dominic Long Avatar

Dominic Long

Insulation Project Manager
Brennan Luchsinger Avatar

Brennan Luchsinger

Senior Site Supervisor | Contracting Division
Diego Savone Avatar

Diego Savone

Director of Labour Division
Operations
Julia Schmidt Avatar

Julia Schmidt

Bookkeeper
Csaba Nyitrai Avatar

Csaba Nyitrai

HR Specialist
Melisa Savone Avatar

Melisa Savone

Outreach & Marketing Manager
Brooke Smith Avatar

Brooke Smith

Resource Development & Fundraising Manager

Board of advisors

Building Up has assembled a board of advisors that is passionate about our mission and has expertise across multiple industries, roles and sectors. The Building Up board is proud to support the work accomplished daily by the team, the program participants and the program graduates.

1-year warranty on all of our labour
Licensed contractor in the City of Toronto.
All required insurance + WSIB Health and safety policies.

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(647)-594-6191
116 Industry St, Unit 208, Toronto, ON
Mon - Fri 09:00 - 17:00