It takes only a brief moment of speaking with Doug Lawrence to get the sense he looks fondly on his experiences as a finalist on Season Three of Canada's Handyman Challenge.
But it doesn't take the sting away from his departure.
“I was surprised to be eliminated, " said Lawrence, who made it through to the Top 12 finalists on the HGTV Canada reality show.
It takes only a brief moment of speaking with Doug Lawrence to get the sense he looks fondly on his experiences as a finalist on Season Three of Canada’s Handyman Challenge.
But it doesn’t take the sting away from his departure.
“I was surprised to be eliminated, ” said Lawrence, who made it through to the Top 12 finalists on the HGTV Canada reality show.
“But when it comes down to it, having the support and the respect of the guys (on my team) means more to me than winning that challenge. ”
Lawrence started climbing the ranks of the show after answering a casting call for the show’s third season. Accompanying him to the Calgary audition was the creation he designed from a single piece of plywood: a trio of stacking chairs. By September 2013, he and 15 other finalists were filming in Toronto.
The reality TV program searches nationwide for contestants to put their handyman skills, resourcefulness and creativity to the test. Three top-notch judges - Bryan Baeumler, Scott McGillivray and Paul Lafrance - are assessing the talent.
The winner will leave the show with bragging rights and a cool $25,000.
A cabinetmaker by trade, Lawrence was no stranger to the show - or to the handyman skills he was putting to the test.
“I come from a handy family, ” said Lawrence, who moved to Cochrane from Sylvan Lake, Alta. “My grandfather, my father - both were handy. We never had a contractor in our home our whole lives. ”
Despite this predisposition, Lawrence wasn’t taking any chances. He said he prepared for the challenge with visits to the Nan Boothby Memorial Library, boning up on techniques and wiping the rust from some of his lesser-used skills.
“I must have checked out more than 50 books from the library - just to brush up on things, ” he said with a laugh.
“My strengths are my collection of broad experiences and my creativity, ” he added. “I have an industrial-design brain. I’m always looking at things and working out ways to improve them. ”
The judges eliminated Lawrence following a tough challenge. Nominated the leader of a team of six, Lawrence guided the group through the task of creating a mural. But it wasn’t without conflict. Controversy arose when Lawrence was asked to leave: he may have led the project, but his handyman work was of quality.
“The project wasn’t completed as it should have been and someone had to answer for that, ” he said earnestly. “I was the leader. I chose to take the honourable route. ”
He may have departed from the show, but Lawrence is still in the running to be declared a fan favourite. To vote for him, visit hgtv.ca.
Canada’s Handyman Challenge airs Tuesdays on HGTV. Full episodes of the show can be viewed after they air at hgtv.ca.
