Capitol Spotlight: Don Andrews, audio specialist and poker player extraordinaire

A former radio journalist turned audio production specialist, Don Andrews helps make sure politicians’ voices are heard.

He’s a proud family man with a successful side hobby as a professional poker player. He started playing tournaments with a $300 windfall in the late 1990s and has been playing off that money ever since.

He has worked 15 years for the Democratic Office of Communications and Outreach, setting up microphones and public address systems, producing the “Look West” podcast and narrating videos for Assembly members.

The job requires him to keep up to date with the latest technology and constantly adapt to new equipment, something he enjoys. “I was drawn to the business in the first place because I like the electronic toys,” he said.

Raised in Kalamazoo, Mich., Andrews was born Don Kehoe (he started using Andrews in his early days in radio when he said “nobody” used their real name). He became interested in the news business as an elementary school student when he worked as a newspaper delivery boy.  When he got to high school, he enjoyed working at the school’s TV production studio.

He met his then wife Laura in college in Michigan and the couple moved to Sacramento in 1982 where he initially worked for the now defunct California Public Radio. He covered the Capitol as a reporter and eventually became managing editor of KFBK AM radio. The couple had three children.

But then his wife died, leaving him alone with small kids. He quit for a while so he could concentrate on caring for his family. He was hired to cover the Unabomber trial in federal court for Metro Networks and eventually became a full-time reporter.

He came to work in his current job through a recommendation from Brian Green, who was then in the position. Green had gotten to know Andrews from his time in the Capitol press corps. “He’s got the cleverest, sharpest humor of most people I know,” Green said.

“When you get the right cards and the right circumstances, you rake the chips in front of you and now you’re standing as king of the table – what a rush!”

Green knew Andrews was well qualified and would easily be able to handle the duties of the job including editing, cutting sound bites and monitoring audio levels. “Don is a tremendous talent and he was hired because he is really good at what he does,” Green said.

Pablo Espinoza, a former Univision TV reporter who used to work with Andrews at the Democratic Office of Communications and Outreach, praised Andrews for his storytelling abilities. “He was a great partner in telling stories about policies and telling the impact the law was having on people’s lives,” said Espinoza.

Andrews takes as much pride in his family as he does in his work. His current wife, Lynda Gledhill is a former journalist who used to work at the San Francisco Chronicle. She is now executive officer at the California Victim Compensation Board. “She is so amazingly talented and unbelievably skilled,” he said. “She is so much better at dealing with people than me.”

The two have a daughter, Julia, a senior and class president at West Campus High School in Sacramento.

As for his adult children from his previous marriage, one is a communications director for a legislator while the other is a stay-at-home mom. “I’m very, very proud of all of them,” he said. A fourth child died.

His interest in poker started as a kid when he played home games for fun. In 2013, he decided to test his skills by going to Las Vegas to play in the World Series of Poker.  He didn’t win the main event that day, but he won enough to keep trying and he has returned several times since then. He always plays Texas Hold ‘Em.

Playing poker has forced him to develop patience because the tournaments can last multiple days. “You can’t win the tournament in the first hour,” he said. “You have to still be there six hours or 10 hours later.”

He said there’s nothing like the feeling of winning. “When you get the right cards and the right circumstances, you rake the chips in front of you and now you’re standing as king of the table- what a rush!”

Greg Hopper, a friend who plays poker with him, describes Andrews as a conservative player.  “He’s a steady player and he wins consistently,” he said.

Back at his job, Andrews continues to learn and grow and keep up with ever-changing times and new modes of communication. He is amazed at how much information the public can get compared to the past.

“People have direct access to the people they’ve elected that we couldn’t even dream of when I was growing up,” he said. “You used to have to write a letter to your representative on snail mail. Now you can (direct message) on Instagram.”