Mike Henry, a lifelong Iowa Falls resident, was recently named manager of HomeTown Tech on Washington Avenue. Henry said he’s excited to be able to offer his expertise to customers of the business. BY COREY MEINTS mmeints@iafalls.com

Mike Henry isn’t like a lot of other soon-to-be college graduates. He knows where he’s going to be. He’s already there, in fact. The Iowa Falls native was recently hired to take over managerial and other duties at HomeTown Tech. The local computer repair, services and accessories shop at 420 Washington Ave., in Iowa Falls, was opened last September by Mike Erps.

Erps already had a shop in Iowa City, opened about seven years ago while he was attending the University of Iowa. He has since established a third store in Ames.

“Things have gone pretty well and we got a pretty good welcome,” Erps said. “This is actually my first storefront. Before this I operated out of my home. Iowa Falls was our first chance. This has been sort of our test bed and it’s worked out really well.” Erps will be moving to Washington, D.C., while retaining ownership authority of all three stores. He said Henry, who has worked for him, is the perfect choice to step up to more responsibility.

“Mike will take over the shop,” Erps said. “He’s a local guy and is really excited.”

Henry was born and raised here. Now 21, he is finishing his final year at Ellsworth Community College while working toward a computer science degree.

“I was almost his (Erps’) first customer when he came to Iowa Falls,” Henry said. “I have been harping on him that I’d like to work for him and stuff.”

That chance finally arrived recently, and has already taken effect. “I jumped on it,” Henry said. “It’s nice (to have a job), especially in this economy.”

Henry had considered more school or seeking work away from home if nothing came up. Erps said he offered Henry the job after discussing it with him.

“He’s in charge and has the final say,” Erps said. “He’s the lead technician and pretty much everything. He wanted to stay here. When I heard that, I knew he had the skills anyway and people around town said he was a good kid. Those are three big factors.”

The Iowa City and Ames locations will be operated by another manager. That also means a change in Iowa Falls. Erps had been traveling between the stores and was only in Iowa Falls in the afternoons. With Henry taking over, work can be done all day, every day.

“I’m really excited,” Henry said. “It’s a great business in Iowa Falls.”

HomeTown Tech offers several goods and services including off-site data back-up, premium antivirus, remote repair, in-store and in-home repair, new set-up, small business support, virus and spyware removal, tune-ups, overhauls, rentals and sales.

Training is also offered and may lead into in-store classes. “We need to hear from our customers what they want to learn,” Erps said. “I’d love to be able to set up classes, it’s just a matter of knowing how we can best help.”