Frequent Questions

What training and academic credentials do you bring to the table?

  • Bachelor of Science Degree, Double Major, Kent State University (Ohio) Family and Consumer Science (Education) and Marketing and Communication.
  • Languages studied: French, Spanish...and English.
  • Awards: Ontario Milk Marketing Board Recipe Contest (2nd Prize)
Skills and competencies:
1. Speaking, writing, negotiating, persuading without harassment or bullying.
2. Organizing, de-cluterring home presentation/staging.
3. Broadcasting, voice-overs
4. Sewing and alterations; home fashions
5. Pet-sitting
6. Proofreading and editing: books
7. Bed & Breakfast hosting
8. Ghostwriting: books, articles
9. Caregiving: elderly, infirm
10. Publicity and promotion
11. Recipe testing/writing
12. Errand-running and deliveries
13. Grocery shopping
14. Holiday meal preparation
15. House hunting
16. Interior painting
17. Money collection
18. Money Management
19. Moving troubleshooting
20. School talks
21. Finding resources
22. Booking appointments

What relevant training and past work experience do you bring to your work?

  • Talk Radio host

  • Syndicated Columnist

  • Author

  • Teacher

  • Owner, Public Relations Consulting Firm

  • Owner, Author's Bed and Breakfast in Toronto

  • Owner, Experts Who Speak, speaker agency

  • Owner, Commission-Free Speakers, speaker directory


What kind of services do you prefer to offer to others?
House-sitting
House decluttering, organizing
Home staging
House hunting

What kind of services do you prefer to AVOID?
Cleaning
Carpentry
Plumbing
Electrical

What kind of clients are you interested in working for?
Home owners
Families
Home-based business owners

Would you like to limit your work to a specific geographic area(s)? Which?
Willing to travel anywhere for a client: Have an office on wheels.
passengerside

How much do you charge per hour or project?
$30-$150 an hour depending on work requested. Minimum 2 hours.

How are the ways you will accept payment?
Cash, check, PayPal, gift cards for TracFone, Walmart, Wegman's, Giant Eagle, Lowe's, Home Depot, postage stamps, etc.

What days and hours would you like to be considered available?
Available: Monday through Saturday: 9 AM to 6 PM.

Do you carry liability insurance?
No, I haven't had cause for it.

Are you bonded?

Not at the moment, nobody has requested it, but I was bonded in the past.


Do you have a criminal record?
No, in fact I have worked as a community volunteer for the Toronto Police.

 Have you had a police/criminal check done?
No, never needed one; but I can if required for the work.

Have you written published books?
Yes, all self-help how-to. For list see: http://www.AndreaReynolds.com/books.html
Do you speak to groups and/or give seminars?
Yes: See this page: http://www.AndreaReynolds.com/ARspeaks.html

Do you give private lessons? On what?
Yes. Money management, debt repayment, money recovery, self-protection.

YOUR GOAL... What are you working towards?
Living expenses, paying off debt, buidling an emergency fund, building a retirement fund, starting a foundation.

Handy Ande... why such a goofy name?
"Handy Andy" spelled with a Y at the end, was also the name of a 1934 film starring the legendary wit, philosopher, actor, columnist, author, radio commentator, and eternal student, Will "I never met a man I didn't like," Rogers. My father often quoted Will Rogers who said, "Live your life so that whenever you lose, you're ahead." In the movie Will's character is hard-working and hen-pecked, but he rebels and eventually, of course, Will as Andy sets everything right for everybody. (Not unlike Handy Ande.)

I changed the Y on Andy to an E, because that was how I spelled my name - Ande - from the age of 12 to 22 when I completed my academic education. Aside: My two best friends were Betty and Marty and I decided on the nickname to match theirs. When we three knew we could be leading lives in different places after high school graduation we had 3 silver charms made with BAM (for Betty Ande Marty) on one side and mine has an A on the reverse.

I wanted a memorable name and remembered how Kinko's, the photocopying business was named for its founder. His friends called him "Kinko" because of his hair texture. My nickname was "Handy Ande" because I took on "domestic" responsibilities from an early age: child care, food preparation, furniture repair and refinishing, clothing construction, etc. In college I was also called "Miss Domestic" which led me to transfer to Kent State University so I could get a degree in Family and Consumer Sciences (Home Economics). I didn't think Miss Domestic would make a good company name.

Would you have thought a career placement company would call itself Monster, or a search tool would call itself Google? It didn't stop them or Kinko's from becoming a large and popular organization. One can always change the name in the future, but Handy Ande seems to have caught on. If you have a better idea... please send it along.
Email HandyAnde