Bel Air couple buys Home Instead franchise

Mary Paramore, Associate Editor and
Jack McLaughlin, Editor
2/5/10

Brice and Candice Irwin have purchased the Home Instead Senior Care office that serves Harford and Cecil counties. They acquired the nine year old, independently owned and operated company, part of an international franchise, from Claude and Leslie Lewis. The Home Instead Senior Care office is at 221 S. Main Street in Bel Air.

Brice Irwin recently ended a career of more than 30 years as a math teacher and assistant principal in Harford County Public Schools. Candice Irwin is an employee relations supervisor with KCI Technologies in Sparks.

The company’s approximately 100 caregivers, who are screened, trained, bonded and insured, provided companionship, meal preparation, light housekeeping, medication reminders, errands and incidental transportation. They provide services, from a few hours a day to 24 hours a day, seven days a week, in private residences, assisted living facilities and other care centers.

“We officially took over Oct. 1,” Brice Irwin said. “I really started in the middle of August, working alongside the previous owner. I was a jack of all trades; experiencing managing and care giving, getting out meeting people in the community. I shadowed her,” he said.

“My wife and I enjoy working with people, helping people,” Irwin said. “In our personal lives, when needs arose, it was a joy, not task or a chore. In particular, in a few situations, we were the primary care givers,” he said, adding, “I can go back to when I was a teenager. My grandmother lived with us. Of course, my parents were the primary care givers but I was still pitching in.”

There are 850 Home Instead franchises in the United States, Canada, Japan, Portugal, Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Taiwan, Spain, Switzerland, German, South Korea Finland, Austria and Puerto Rico.

When asked why he and his wife chose to buy an existing business rather than start one up themselves, Irwin answered that they wanted to stay in the area. He was born and raised here and Candice Irwin came to the area as a small child.

“We like Harford and Cecil counties. When the opportunity presented itself it seemed right,” Irwin said. He pointed out the couple wanted to stay close to his parents (her parents are deceased) as they age.

Brice Irwin also noted that while his wife works in the business, she has not yet become a full time employee. “A new business is a considerable risk and a cautious approach is advisable.”