When Bradley Geohagan’s first son underwent open-heart surgery just three days after his birth, he did quite a bit of soul-searching. “I was not going in the direction I wanted to in life yet,” he says. But soon after Daniel came through his surgery, Bradley gained clarity.

He returned home, refurbished his father’s 1950s woodworking shop, and got to work. “I saw my father work in that same shop, and I realized that it was how I learned who my dad was so well. I wanted Daniel to see who I was, and also to be able to be there anytime he needed me.”

Bradley is the seventh generation of woodworkers in Pensacola, Fla. “I used to introduce myself as my father’s son or I am Edwin Thorn’s grandson, or Clayton Geohagan’s grandson, to people I would meet. It gave me a certain credit right away. Very young I began to appreciate that they were leaving a good name for me.”

Bradley is returning the favor. Here, in his shop that sits no more than five feet from the house he grew up in and now lives in again, Bradley is preserving the art and heritage of the Geohagan woodworking trade. Bradley’s two sons, who are now 3 and 7, learn and work beside their dad just like he did.

Bradley may have learned the craft from his father, but his artistry is all his own. From specialty tables and chairs to ornate wooden crosses, woodworking is far more than just a trade to this 33-year-old. Each piece is co-designed between he and the customer and uses all solid woods – no metal – that are locally harvested.

Since the downturn of the economy, Bradley’s phone doesn’t ring quite as often. But he remains optimistic. “The quantity of jobs has decreased, but the quality of the jobs has increased. Each piece I have done over the past two years are pieces people have really put thought into and are willing to invest their money in.”

Bradley says the economy has affected him in more good ways than bad. “Right now I have more time to meet more people outside of the shop,” he says. “I recently started making pieces for a local art gallery and volunteer there just so I can meet the wonderful people who come to the gallery. I am also able to sit and talk a little longer to a complete stranger in a coffee shop about what I do.”

Bradley thrives on personal interaction with his customers and the creativity that brings to his work. “It is very personal what we do,” he says. “My customers are family to me, and most of them consider me family more than I know”— and for good reason. While they may not share the same last name, they share a piece of heart and soul in the pieces they create together.

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For more information, visit www.gwoodwork.com. A version of this story appears in the May 2009 issue of Southern Lady magazine.