Dawn Holsinger, like most women in roofing, is a multi-faceted and fascinating woman. Her calm demeanor puts people at ease as she speaks confidently about her business and the roofing industry. One of her favorite quotes is “Hustle and Heart will set you apart” and she lives this daily. She owns Delta Rep Group with Partners Wayne Heironimus and Justin Burnham. Delta Rep Group is a manufacturer’s rep covering the state of Florida for commercial roofing products and construction materials.
Once you get into the industry, most don’t leave, and Dawn has been in it for 18 years and counting. Her words about her journey into roofing, “I didn’t choose roofing, roofing chose me. In 2001, I was working for Hill’s Travel as the office manager when I found out I was having twins. (This is after she already had 2 boys at home) I worked for Jean Franklin and with Chris Heironimus. I had no idea Erskine Franklin, Jean’s husband, and Wayne Heironimus, Chris’s husband worked in roofing until the twins were born. Then, being a mother of four, everything changed. We didn’t fit in our car or our house! LOL!
Chris’ husband, Wayne, was a commercial roofing product manufacturers rep and needed help with his business expense reports so I started part-time in the evenings and weekends. Little did I know I was then born into roofing. Part-time became full-time in 2008 with Pro-Rep. We started Delta Rep Group in 2017. This is my 18th year in roofing.” Her responsibilities include sales calls, travel, trade shows, demos, product presentations, networking, and the business back office reporting along with a myriad of other tasks that every business owner takes on.
Women in Roofing make up a small percentage of the industry and being a minority comes with positives and negatives. Dawn’s perspective is the bright side of things due to having supportive male partners. She loves the constant learning that comes with her career and keeping up with the ever-evolving advancements and education. She enjoys how helpful most men are and that if you aren’t educated in a certain answer, there is always someone willing to help. Making sure to be your true self makes you a stronger presence. Everything comes with challenges, and Dawn has those too. Her biggest challenges are old school thinking and traveling alone. Roofing is one of the career paths that really does choose you and Dawn has found her home.
Dawn’s family consists of her wonderful husband Rich and her 4 amazing boys. Tragically, their oldest son Zachary passed in 2010 at the age of 20 due to a motorcycle accident and they miss him every day. Their second oldest is Jake who is almost 25 with a bachelor’s in Engineering and is currently finishing his master’s degree in Business. He is set to get married November 1, 2019 to Ina Crnalic, who is also a NWIR member!
Noah and Harrison, the twins, are 17 years old and Seniors in High School. Both are looking to attend University of Florida (UF). The twins were each diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes but at different ages. Noah was diagnosed at age 3 and Harrison was diagnosed at age 8. Their diagnosis put the family into action, and they participate in diabetes research at UF while also fundraising to support the research for better quality of living and a cure for diabetes.
Dawn’s strength led her to her fundraising with the JDRF Roofing Industry Golf Tournament with Jim Coston, Sr. each year. They are in their 12th year. Dawn is so dedicated that the JDRF Tampa Chapter named an award in her honor; the Dawn Holsinger Volunteer of the Year Award! She also has memberships in NWIR, RCI, FRSA, WCRCA, RCASF, and TCRCA. She is such an inspiration to what can be accomplished with determination. Another of her favorite quotes is “You Miss 100% of the shots you never take”. Dawn has proven this to be a great sentiment as she puts herself out there, takes the shots and has shown how good success looks!