Andrea McAdam can safely be described as a woman who is multi-talented and one who is never too big or small for a task.
It is because she is multi-faceted that one can not pin this woman down to one profession. And no, the saying ‘Jack of all trades, master of none’ does not apply for her as she is accomplished in all she has tried. Whether it is designing, public relations, administrative duties, make-up, you name it, she has done it.
The Scene caught up with this talented lady recently and she did not hesitate to relate who she is and what she is about. With that ever-ready smile lurking and sudden peals of laughter, Andrea told us that as a little girl she could never figure out what she wanted to be. The two things she recalled flirting with in her head as a child were nurse and librarian. 
Librarian? She does not look the part but said the idea may have born out of the fact that she learnt to read even before she started school. “So it could have been the fact that I loved to read so much and also because I used to hide and read in the toilet [her mother caught her out and put an end to it as she used it as a means to get away from chores],” Andrea said.
The idea of becoming a librarian did not last long. However, if designing had been as big a phenomenon in Guyana then as it is now, Andrea would have probably known right there and then that she wanted to become a designer. Instead it took years before she decided to put that talent to use. But as she told The Scene, as a child she used to create her own designs for clothing on paper and her aunt, who was a seamstress, sewed them. “But it was never recognised as a designing then and even though I did it for years I never thought of it as a career.”
Andrea grew up in Linden and at age 18 when she was ready to migrate from the bauxite town to Canada, she had still not decided on what career move she was going to make. When she applied to university and was accepted she was forced study the curriculum before making up her mind on what course of study she should take. Public communications appeared to the most interesting course and it was that she read for and graduated with a degree. But even before she commenced her university days, Andrea worked with a railway company and gained much needed experience.
Prior to that, she attended college and had decided that she wanted to become teacher. She was actually accepted to the early childhood education training, but just before classes were about to commence she changed her mind and instead took a job at the railway company.
After some time of working, Andrea said, she realised that it was only persons with degrees who were being promoted and that propelled her into taking studies which included television, radio and photography.
However, even though she did all of that, and has a voice for both television and radio, Andrea has never really worked in the mainstream media.
It was while she was at university, being ever-adventurous, that Andrea decided to take sewing classes, something that is now an asset in her world of designing
Shortly after leaving university she worked at a travel agency but then tragedy struck and she had to undergo surgery and it took while before she got back into the world of work. “But I can tell you, I did all kinds of jobs. I worked as a waitress several times, and nothing was too big or small for me.”
Shortly after the surgery, Andrea decided to move to New York and on arrival there, got employment at a relief agency in the promotion and development area. She learned about the computer on the job and became the computer technician for the agency.
And in the meantime, even as she held down the full-time job, Andrea became a Mary Kay beauty consultant. From that stint as the consultant, Andrea is today one of the best make-up artists in Guyana (The Scene has first-hand knowledge of this). She loves to do make-up and recalls that she got her first lip stick at age ten from her mother. “It was a little stump of a brown lipstick that she had used,” she said while almost falling off her chair with laughter.
In 1994, after a personal setback, she returned to Guyana and has been here ever since. Her decision to return home was also anchored in the fact that she did not want to be away from her parents who were getting down in age; their only other child was also overseas.
Knowing Andrea, she did not sit around for too long and she soon became employed at what was then the Embassy Club as the food and beverage assistant manager. While working there, she also designed clothing and soft furnishings, such as cushions and chair backs among other items. She tried out her hands in public relations when she joined that department of the People’s National Congress (PNC) in 1995 and worked there until 1997 when she resigned and became the administrator of the Guyana Cancer Society (and no she is not a cancer survivor).
In 2001 she went back to the PNC during the election and returned to the society after the election. In 2003, Andrea took up employment at one of Guyana’s largest HIV/AIDS programmes as the organisation’s programme officer.
But during that time, can you remember Girl Talk? It was a popular television programme on Channel 9 hosted by Andrea and Patricia Woolford. The programme became a reality in 2001 and ran until 2004 when it had to go given Andrea’s demanding job. But it is something that she would very much like to do again. The programme, which dealt with women’s issues, was very popular and made Andrea a household name.
She also started making her mark in the world of designing but it was in 2002 when she designed for the Miss Guyana World pageant that she really came out as a designer. “Since then I have made leaps and bounds in the world of designing.” She has held two fashion shows since, Passion and Pride, which was an all-white affair, and Fantasia.
Andrea describes herself, and we agree, as a “very bubbly and happy person who is not miserable and one who does not like drama.” She said she does not bear malice and also tries to send off positive signals. “I always try to find the best in people and look beyond the surface. “Life is not a dress rehearsal, you have to love the life and do the best you can,” she advised.
Andrea is married to journalist, Paul Mc Adam, whom she said is very supportive of all she does and believes in everything she tries. “He is very proud of me and I could not function without his and my parents’ support.”
And in the meantime Andrea has still not followed a one-track career and may never do so. “I am still exploring. A lot of people are talented at many things but they are afraid to venture out. I am not. I try my hands at everything.” ( samantha_alleyne2000@yahoo.com)
