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Monday, December 17, 2012

Mike Holmes: A Role Model

Having the title of "role model" is a huge weight and responsibility for anyone, let alone for someone who lives a large part of their life in the public eye. There's no doubt that Mike Holmes is someone for young boys (and girls) to look up to. He's made a living out of rescuing people in distress - a real life superhero. Not only that, but he also lives his life as a very public dad, whose children are following in his enormous footsteps. These are just some of the things that I personally admire about Mike, but I'm not the only one. In a recent entry on the blog, "Eric the Half a Blog," one Holmes fan writes about her enjoyment of Mike's shows, and also her admiration for Mike as a person. She describes Mike as a "role mode" for young boys and men to emulate, and "truly inspirational". I agree. Here's what she wrote:



 From Eric the Half a Blog:

Role Model Series: Mike Holmes


When I get a few precious minutes to myself and relax in front of the TV, chances are there’s a Mike Holmes show on one of the stations. It might be Holmes on Homes, or Holmes Inspection, or the newest Holmes Makes It Right. (Make it right being his motto of sorts.) I always enjoy watching him work because he is entertaining and I like home improvement shows and I also like carpentry and such since I have some experience building play sets (I just love power tools!) but there is another reason I really like having him on my TV.

Mike Holmes reminds me that there are good people in the world who see injustice and problems and do something about it. He makes the world a better place through his work; helping people who have been victims of poor or even dangerous work on their homes, or been taken advantage of by other contractors. He swoops in and, with his skills, expertise and trusted team, he makes it right. Here is a role model I would love for my sons to emulate.

Mike Holmes started his first contracting company at age 19, when most of us are still trying to decide what to do with our lives. At 21 he had his own renovation company. In 2006 he founded The Holmes Foundation in order to help young people enter the building trades and to help those who have been ruined financially by bad renovations. Holmes is known internationally as an author, TV personality, and highly trusted skills promoter and workman. Readers Digest’s annual survey named Mike Holmes as the second most trusted person in Canada (The first being David Suzuki). He has done work to restore homes to people in New Orleans who lost their homes to Hurricane Katrina, and received an Honorary Doctorate of Technology from the British Columbia Institute of Technology.

On Homes’ shows, I have seen him rebuild a two story deck which had collapsed because it couldn’t support the weight of three people and caused injury. He has repaired damage from mould, asbestos, insects of all kinds, water damage, foundation cracks, insufficient insulation, etc. for new home owners who, after having a home inspector pass their homes as safe, (new and old) have found problems that were missed and made their new homes unlivable. I have seen him assess unsafe basement renovations, home additions, and other home upgrades, and with his team of skilled plumbers, electricians, carpenters, etc. (his own family included) he not only brings these peoples homes up to code, but makes them the safest, most secure and loveliest homes you could ever wish to see. He has even had to tear down an entire house due to bad renovations and build a brand new one for the homeowner.

The people he does the work for are good deserving people who have been cheated or ignored by contractors, inspectors and even townships who have left them high and dry to deal with unsafe conditions with their own pocketbooks. A lot of the avoidable problems found will cost tens of thousands of dollars to fix and most of the time these people just don’t have the money to fix it. A lot of the material used on the shows is donated by the retailer (they get some sweet advertising by being a part of the show) and the workers salary is paid for by the production.

Mike Holmes is a terrific role model for boys and men, he uses his skills to help people who need it, he works hard to fix the mistakes made by people who should know better and make life easier for the people who need it. His generosity of spirit and fierce sense or justice is inspirational. I truly feel more hope for humankind when I see smart caring and hardworking men like Mike Holmes doing so much good for his community, his country and the world.

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