LINDA DENICOLA Cathy Vanchure dispenses some helpful advice to a customer at Alps Appliance on Tuesday.
If Home Improvement’s Tim "the tool man" Taylor lived in Red Bank he would probably be calling Cathy Vanchure of Alps Supply Co. for help with appliance repair problems.
It seems that everyone else does. Tuesday morning there was a nonstop flow of do-it-yourself customers coming in or calling Cathy who, with her husband Jack, owns the appliance and gas grill parts store at 92 Shrewsbury Ave., just opposite Oakland Street.
The Vanchures have been in business for 25 years, first on Maple Avenue, then Monmouth Street. They moved to their current location three years ago. Cathy came out from behind the scenes, where she administered the business, 10 years ago to take over the front counter and field questions from customers.
According to Jack: "Our founding purpose was to provide a source of major appliance parts to people with the capability and desire to accomplish their own repairs."
They stock about 3,500 different appliance parts, plus a complete line of gas barbecue replacement parts. Cathy seems to know where every part in the inventory is and which brand appliances it can repair. She also knows what kinds of difficulties the do-it-yourselfer can get into, so she spends a lot of time making sure that they understand what she is advising.
"People often don’t know how to approach a problem. That’s what I talk them through. I prefer to do that in person so that I can make eye contact. That way, I can tell if the customer is following me. If I’m not reaching him or her, I try a different approach."
Cathy explained that if she finds that the customer does not seem capable of repairing the appliance, she will recommend a reliable, honest service technician. "I know who they are because I’ve researched them," she explained.
Cathy also researches appliance stores. "About three times a year, I go out and look at businesses that sell appliances and grills so that I can make an educated recommendation," she said.
The problems that Cathy helped customers solve Tuesday morning ran the gamut from fixing the ice maker on a refrigerator to repairing a microwave and a gas grill.
The customers have nothing but accolades for this petite woman who probably knows more about fixing appliances than most men who do it for a living.
Jim Trezza, Lincroft, needed help repairing the ice maker on his refrigerator. "I don’t have the answer, but you always do," he said to her.
"She can fix anything," he said. "And if you can’t come in, you can call her and she will walk you through it over the phone.
"I can’t say enough good things about her," he continued. "I send friends here who know nothing about appliance repair. Before you know it, they are taking apart their refrigerator."
Trezza also said that his wife comes in all the time for woman-to-woman help. Trezza and Cathy joked about how men never read the instructions that come with repair kits. "I’m a man. They should make two kits for appliance repairs, one without instructions for men and one with instructions for women," he said.
Another customer said he was selling his house but needed to repair a knob on his range. She advised him to use super glue rather than spend $28 for a new knob since the new owners will probably replace the range anyway.
Her husband Jack says for every 10 customers, she sells five parts and helps the other five to repair their old part.
"But I sleep well at night," she said.
Sometimes, on Saturdays, the line of people waiting for help reaches the door. She takes her time with each customer and often those on line become impatient. "It doesn’t matter to me if it’s a $3 part they need or a $20 part. I give them as much help as they need," she said.
Cathy learned to love mechanics from her father, Leo Witczak, when she was a child. "My father was my mentor. He was a wonderful man. He died when I was 16, and his funeral was larger than that of most public figures. He was very loved in our community of Wilkes-Barre, Pa."
According to Cathy, her father used to say that she was born with a screwdriver in her hand. "From the age of 7, I remember following him around. I always wanted to know how things work."
From 1965-77, she worked for a large business as a manufacturing engineer and a cost accountant. "In 1977 I gave notice because the company had stopped caring about their employees. They weren’t going to change, so I had to leave," she said.
She says she loves the simplicity and logic of mechanics, but mostly she loves helping people. She remembers another piece of advice from her father. "He always said to me, ‘Bring a smile to someone’s face. Money can’t buy that.’ "
Her customers smile because she saves them money. One customer had a microwave problem. She advised him to never open the door while the microwave was still running; then she sold him an $8 wave guard.
"This is great. I thought I was doomed. I’ll remember that for sure," the customer said.
Cathy said, "In simple terms, what I do is take away the unknown on the repair and take them through every screw and bolt on the appliance."
There was a bouquet of flowers on the counter from a grateful customer. "I get a lot of flowers and candy, and sometimes on Saturday mornings, a guy that I have helped will come in with doughnuts."
There is something else that her father said to her during her formative years, something that has became a guiding force in her life. "He told me to give 110 percent of who I am to whatever I do," she recalled.
"People are grateful, but I’m just doing what I enjoy doing."