I grew up as a missionary kid, living in places such as Papua New Guinea, Texas, and Quito, Ecuador. Our family returned to live in Canada when I was in Junior High. I enjoyed the arts: music, painting, and drawing cartoons. After graduating high school and taking a year of Biblical Studies at Columbia Bible College, I applied for UFV’s graphic design program, but wasn’t accepted–my first dose of “real life.” I continued with a smattering of interesting courses at UFV, and slowly worked my way through a diploma in Worship Arts at CBC. This included some drama courses which I really enjoyed, but didn’t see a future in… I got married, we had 2 kids, and I got a “real job” working with my hands and continued in carpentry-related fields for quite some time, including a term volunteering at a trade school in Zambia. In 2017 I started a handyman business which I enjoyed due to the great variety of tasks; one of my contracts was set building for Gallery 7 Theatre. I enjoyed it so much that I soon found myself designing sets and working for other local theatres. Due to the time-consuming nature of set-building, my schedule got busier and busier and I realized I needed to refine my focus. In December 2025 I quit my handyman business to work in theatre full-time.
handyandrew.ca 