When Harry Howansky retired from his job as an engineer with the state, he wasn’t ready to sit back and relax. The 80-year-old Colonie man who says he grew up on a farm and considers himself quite handy, thought ‘why not put my skills to work.’
Five years ago, Harry and his wife, Arlene, decided to take on a new venture.
“I had retired and saw an article in our church bulletin that said the Umbrella program was looking for handymen. I applied, had a nice interview and he asked me to join – so I did,” says 80-year-old Harry Howansky. “And during the discussion I told him about a lot of things that my wife does, and he said maybe she should apply, she did and she was accepted.”
The couple is now in their fifth year helping other Capital District seniors with things such as housekeeping, leaky faucets and yard work through the Umbrella of Colonie program which gives elderly homeowners the help they need to live safely and independently in their homes.
The program connects senior homeowners with retired handymen and handywomen who perform minor and occasionally more major, home repairs and maintenance at a reasonable cost.
Colonie Senior Service Center Executive Director, Ed Neary, says the program is a win – win for both parties involved.
“The program is a great opportunity for seniors to support the community and make some money on the side,” he says. “Most of them though just like helping out the seniors and helping them to stay in their homes.”
The Umbrella of Colonie program has been in place since 2008. With more and more people making the decision to live at home as they age, Neary said the program just makes sense.
“When you look at senior programs, historically, probably one of the greatest need is transportation, but then it’s ability to keep people in their homes. It’s a sense of comfort, like someone is watching out for them,” he says. “If the weather gets cold, we check on them to make sure they are ok, and when it’s hot too.”
“The program is a great opportunity for seniors to support the community and make some money on the side.”
- Ed Neary, Colonie Senior Service Center Executive Director
The program, which charges a yearly membership fee, has 400 members and is growing everyday.
Neary says for seniors who choose to manage by themselves, it makes them feel like they have family around.
Rich Brokaw, who has been working with Umbrella for a couple of years now, says the relationships he has developed with the homeowners are amazing.
“They treat me like family. It’s really special in that way,” the 60-year-old from Albany says.
The Howansky’s have lost count of the number of people they have met through the program.
“A lot of times after the job is done if they want to sit down and talk, we will take a half an hour and sit and talk with them,” Harry says. “If you do the job well and they like it, the next time they will ask specifically for me or my wife to do it.”
Neary said the idea between seniors helping seniors is to create a relationship between the handyman and the seniors.
“A lot of great things can happen when they become friends,” he says.
Who can be a handyperson?
There are no requirements or restrictions other than a background check. Handy people can live in any part of the community – not just Colonie.
“We ask what you are good at, and if we are comfortable with who they are and why they are here,” he says. “We will try them out and see how it works. If it works out well, we will keep adding to the number of jobs they get.”
What do handypeople do?
The services range from simple to more in depth projects.
“I do most everything,” Brokaw said. “I have built decks, put up sheetrock, raked leaves, put up crown molding and a lot of different things,” I grew up on a farm so can do most everything.”
Some homeowners may need just a little help such as tending to the yard, getting to the store, or replacing a furnace filter.
“Safety with heating especially this time of year with furnaces and water heaters,” Neary says. “In the spring there is usually a lot of yard cleanup. In some cases people just want someone to help them go to the store or a social event.”
Brokaw said he enjoys being able to use his skills to help.
“My main reason is I have a heart for seniors and widows. A lot of them are limited income, so it’s a program that really helps them with low cost,” he says.
Last year the “Helping Hands” award was presented to Brokaw. In just 17 months with the program, he completed more than 200 jobs.
“There are a few people like me that can do most anything, but it’s not common. “The fact that I can do most jobs – masonry too. plumbing, electrical … It’s nice to be able to do these things for people,” Brokaw says.
The Howansky’s received the “Teamwork” award last year. The husband and wife team have been with the program for more than four years and completed 300 jobs. Many senior homeowners will request them specifically together.
“We do separate things except if we are painting, then my wife works with me, or if we are wallpapering. The other place we work together is in the fall when they call us to do yard work. Both Arlene and I go and do yard work,” Harry says.
Arlene, 78, also cleans windows, takes care of housekeeping and brings seniors to appointments and other outings.
“It keeps us busy enough,” Harry says. “There are times where in the spring and early summer where we are out just about everyday with a job weeks at a time.”
Harry said the extra money is good, but the main reason they do it is to keep busy and stay social and active.
“It does produce some extra money, but it’s very small,” he says. “We get 12 bucks an hour. If you work three hours you get 36 hours. It doesn’t go far, but I do it and my wife does it because we enjoy it and we have met a lot of nice people.”
“I wish there were more people signing up for it, because there are a lot of people out there that need work and they are not getting it done,” Harry
Currently Umbrella of Colonie employs 40 handy people.
For more information about Umbrella of Colonie, visit colonieseniors.org or call 459-7152.