Building Dreams

You know her from DIY Network, HGTV and HomeAdvisor commercials. Find out how it all started with her church youth group

- AMY MATTHEWS

I LOOKED AROUND THE OFFICE, waiting to audition. Of all the TV shows to be called for! Bathroom Renovations on the DIY Network. I was an actor, a trained opera singer, a musician. By now I’d played myriad roles in my career: from commercials, voice-overs, films, plays, operas, cruise ship entertainment…but no reality television. The producers were looking for a host, someone who could show people how to get it all done: redo the tile, fix the plumbing, paint the walls. An acting teacher in college once told us, “Your job is to audition. To show up. To give it your all. You won’t book every job you want, but you’ll book the jobs that are right for you.” I was a shower upper. I always brought my A game and left expectations at the door. But for some reason, this audition felt different. Is this job part of the bigger plan…?

That audition was a dozen years ago, here in Minneapolis. My home. The place I grew up. Did I say DIY? Well, yes, there was a bit of that in my background. My dad was an Army reservist and counselor. In his spare time, he liked fixing things around the house. The oldest of three daughters, I was always amazed at my Dad’s workroom and its plethora of tools. A room filled with wonder and potential. Whenever a plumber or electrician or carpenter would come in, Dad would ask a million questions, trying to figure out how he could do something himself.