I want to help an entrepreneur find a successor. He didn't ask me to do this for him. But he said he was game to have this appeal published.

Warren Hemming, "The Appliance Doctor" of Pennsylvania's Lancaster County, came to our house recently to fix a refrigerator that wasn't cold enough. My husband and I avoided spending the money on repairs for months. Service fees, parts, and labor -- it was likely to cost more than we wanted to spend just so the milk would last a few extra days.

Hemming arrived at 7:40 a.m. By 7:50, he had diagnosed the problem, fixed it, and was toting up the bill. Total: $36.57. With honesty like that, I knew there was a story in this business owner.

It turns out, Hemming has had his own appliance-repair business since 1962. He could have spent an extra hour here, poking around before diagnosing the problem. He could have ordered parts we didn't need. Or -- as he tells me some repair services do -- he could have done a shoddy job so we'd have to call him back. Few consumers would know they had been had.

Hemming can fix appliances. But he's in his doctors' and God's hands when it comes to the cancer he has battled for the past few years. With no paid sick leave and no employees, Hemming has worked during all his chemotherapy treatments. He schedules them on Friday afternoons, so he can recover before work on Monday. Hemming's dream was to pass along his business to his son. However, the boy tragically died of cancer at age 18. None of Hemming's four daughters are suited for the business. He has no one to pass it to.

NO QUICK FIX. Hemming has been looking for a successor for some time. But he's up against several obstacles: He can't afford an apprentice. He says workers' compensation and unemployment insurance alone make that prohibitive. Local vocational schools with appliance-training programs turned out to be a dead end, too. First, students are training on new appliances. No one knows how to fix the vintage models, except "the old guys who are all dying out," Hemming says. The second problem with vocational school students is their asking price: They want to be paid more per hour than he makes.

Hemming's main problem is that his business isn't profitable enough to have buyers beating down his door. Repeat customers are rare. With the economy good and credit easy, most consumers just charge new appliances when their current ones break. But, ironically, Hemming can't keep up with business when the economy is bad. Hemming -- who doesn't have much of a formal education -- only recently computerized his business. So 37 years of servicing customers isn't readily available for prospective buyers to see. All Hemming has to offer is the goodwill he has generated in the community with his honest, quick service and his incredible wealth of knowledge.

I can't stand the thought of Hemming's business dying when he does. It seems such a waste of good character and skill. I guess there's nothing wrong with the notion that this business has served Hemming and his family well for four decades, and the business will retire when he does. Still, I keep thinking: There has to be someone who would want to learn from this guy, someone who could see the potential in his company and would pay a fair price to be let in on his secrets.

So pass the word. Think of children you know who are graduating from high school and who aren't geared up to attend college. Think of your neighbors who have been laid off and are looking for a venture of their own. How about that person who's always tinkering and talking about how he'd love to quit his miserable job?

Even if you don't know someone who might be interested in buying this business, if you've got an appliance that needs doctoring and you live in the Lancaster area, call Hemming. You won't be disappointed.

Have a question on how to handle the pressures of running a business and the impact on your personal life, marriage, and family? Contact Azriela Jaffe at AZ@azriela.com. Please put "BW Online question" in the subject field. Your real name will be kept confidential if you request, but please give an E-mail address, phone number, and your hometown so she can contact you for more information. Because of heavy volume, Azriela cannot guarantee that she will answer every query.