Mike Holmes is one of the friendliest contractors you'll find on the small screen, but his life isn't all smiles, and amid his success, he's also faced tragedy.
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00:00Mike Holmes is one of the friendliest contractors you'll find on the small screen, but his life
00:05isn't all smiles. And amid his success, he's also faced tragedy.
00:10Mike Holmes experienced a shocking loss in 2014, when his friend Craig Lowe died while
00:15scuba diving. At the time, it was unknown what happened exactly, since Lowe was by himself.
00:21His family later surmised that the 41-year-old had run low on air while exploring a shipwreck.
00:26Holmes told the Toronto Sun,
00:28It's terribly tragic. When I woke up yesterday morning and found my daughter crying, telling
00:31me happy birthday, I knew something was wrong.
00:35When the friends first met at a job site, Holmes was immediately impressed by Lowe's
00:38skills as a painter. The two began a long, successful professional and personal connection.
00:44You want to paint? You want to paint right? Talk to Craig.
00:48Holmes wrote on Facebook,
00:49I have been working with Craig since day one of Holmes on Holmes. He was a generous, dedicated,
00:54and talented man who was always willing to lend a hand.
00:57Months after Lowe's death, Holmes remembered his friend in a subsequent post. He shared
01:01a photo of the two smiling together, along with a magazine article about Lowe's life
01:06and career.
01:08Mike Holmes has three children. His son, Mike Jr., and his younger daughter, Sherry, work
01:12alongside their dad in construction, both on and off camera.
01:15That's a great look. How's my hair?
01:18As a child, Sherry experienced frequent head pain. At age 19, she was diagnosed with a
01:24brain tumor. While her diagnosis and surgery happened within a week, Sherry noted that
01:28the recovery process was challenging. Mike posted on LinkedIn in 2024,
01:32It was extremely scary, but I am so grateful that her treatment was successful.
01:37That same year, Sherry and her dad partnered with the charity Megan's Hug to promote awareness
01:41of pediatric brain tumors. Mike also promoted the charity through his Instagram page. In
01:47addition, the HGTV star used his TV show to support another family with a child who had
01:51a brain tumor. He remarked that it was a particularly poignant experience for him,
01:56and he was grateful to use his construction skills to renovate the family's home.
02:00In a 2020 Facebook post, Mike mentioned Sherry's experience and noted that amid the emotional
02:05trauma, it can be hard to deal with life's other demands. He wrote,
02:08It's a scary time for any family, and often the other things we're supposed to do fall
02:13to the wayside as we support our family members in need.
02:17Mike Holmes had a tight-knit relationship with his parents, Jim and Shirley, but he
02:21didn't have long with them. Jim and Mike bonded while doing home renovation projects together,
02:26and Mike was particularly struck by his dad's attention to detail and commitment to a job
02:31well done. As Mike's career as a contractor took off, Jim made sure he let his son know
02:36that he was blown away by his talent. Sadly, Jim died suddenly when he was 55, falling
02:41down the basement stairs and breaking his neck. Mike was only 30 at the time.
02:46Unfortunately, Mike's mom had a complex health history, and she died when she was 56. Since
02:51his parents both died in middle age, Mike became convinced that he wouldn't experience
02:55longevity either. Happily, he's beating his lifespan predictions, and he reached his milestone
03:0060th birthday in 2023.
03:03Unfortunately, Mike Holmes' celebrity has caused him to be targeted by a slew of disruptive
03:09rumors, but at least he has a sense of humor about it. He joked about the scams in a 2022
03:13episode of his Homes on Homes podcast,
03:16I'm going to jail for 25 years. I believe in the CBD oil and sex pills.
03:24Back in 2019, Holmes reached out to fans on his blog and cautioned them about these false
03:28endorsements. It's also been a hassle for Sherri Holmes, as people have questioned her
03:32any time a new unsubstantiated rumor arises. Even companies like Viagra had been duped
03:38and threatened Holmes with legal action regarding products he had never endorsed.
03:42I got an email from Viagra that said cease and desist in my company.
03:50But Holmes was implicated in an even more destructive scam that involved a fake casting
03:54call for his HGTV show. While he does occasionally make these types of requests, he issued a
03:59cautionary warning on Instagram, writing,
04:02"'My team will never reach out to you on social media. Beware of scammers.'"
04:06As he's noted on his podcast, his official website is the only portal for these types
04:10of communications.
04:13Finally, while this may not be tragic for Holmes himself, he's been enmeshed in legal
04:16battles that are unfortunate news for fans who felt he could do no wrong. In 2021, Holmes
04:22got caught up in an $8 million lawsuit that involved a housing development in Ontario,
04:27Canada. The HGTV star, who'd bought a home there in 2016, had appeared in promotional
04:32materials for the complex and praised the building techniques that were used.
04:36I'm proud to be working with a new home builder, Third Line Homes.
04:39Unfortunately, while prospective homeowners felt confident in purchasing based on Holmes'
04:44association with the houses, some of them experienced serious problems, including mold.
04:48It did make us feel comfortable knowing that it was a Mike Holmes-approved home.
04:53Holmes pushed back on the legal claims, stating that his company hadn't approved the homes
04:57that turned out to have concerns. He wrote on Facebook,
04:59"...we do not deny we advertised our inspection services. However, no homes were registered
05:04or took up our inspection services."
05:06Unfortunately, this wasn't the first time Holmes was sued. In 2014, the HGTV star was
05:12involved in a $3.1 million legal action. Julius Brinkman, who had served as CEO of Holmes
05:17Communities Make It Right, accused Holmes and others of not fulfilling the parameters
05:22of his contract. Among the allegations made in the claim, it asserted they failed to pay
05:26Brinkman money raised by him for the benefit of HCMR.