8 | <strong>01907</strong> Todd Flannery, owner of Flannery's Handymen, started the company before his daughter Rylee, right, was born. Rylee is now eighteen and heading off to Nichols College in the fall. PHOTOS: JULIA HOPKINS Being handy is just dandy for Flannery family In 1999, Todd Flannery was headed to his job at Bertucci’s, running late because of a handyman job he had been at beforehand. His boss told him on the phone that if he wasn’t there on time, he would be fired. Flannery quit on the spot, went home, and told his wife, Kristyn, that he was going to become a handyman full-time. “Of course, she thought I was nuts, but she supported me,” Flannery said, laughing. “Now, 21 years later, we’ve got a dozen trucks on the road and it’s busy.” Flannery, who lives in Swampscott, knew soon after he started his company, Flannery’s Handymen, that he needed the money: he and Kristyn, his girlfriend at the time, had their first daughter, Rylee, on the way. He had originally worked odd jobs with a friend under the business name Two Guys and a Dog, but decided to make it his BY TRÉA LAVERY profession after leaving the restaurant. Flannery’s Handymen, based in Lynn, offers moving, demolition, clean-out and junk removal services, along with other handyman work. Flannery, who runs the company with his brother, Rory, said that they often work jobs that range from tiny apartments to million-dollar homes, and that he strives to make sure clients feel cared for. “A lot of moving companies have bad raps. The barrier of communication is kind of hard, and basically, after the move is done, there’s nobody to reach if there’s an issue,” he said. “My cellphone is on every bill.” That care pays off. Flannery said that most of his business comes from repeat customers or others who were referred by friends impressed with their work. Rory Flannery, who has been with the company since 2004 and runs its day-today operations, said that he loves working with his brother, and recalled the early days when the two of them would put in 100-hour weeks together. Now, because of all that teamwork, they are able to balance each other out, he said. "If I'm too hard on the guys, he can check me. It doesn't get personal," Rory said. "It's a lot of give and take there." Beyond their everyday work, Flannery’s also participates in charitable giving and green initiatives. Flannery does his best to find new uses for furniture that his company removes from clients’ homes, and has organized large-scale donations overseas in the past. In addition, he’s known for some more unique ways of giving back. In 2011, FLANNERY, page 10
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