INVESTING IN THE NEXT GENERATION OF WOODWORKERS

PHOTOS BY MILTON MANN

The Bull City Woodshop launched in 2021 with three kids working out of a converted garage. Two years later, the nonprofit youth-focused woodworking center has a regular contingent of 45 volunteer instructors/mentors and offers woodworking classes to more than 55 area kids each week.

“By giving kids something to do and a skill they can use, we are responding to a real need in the community,” said Andrea Bowens, founder and executive director of the Bull City Woodshop. “Woodworking is a skill that fosters individual development, community connection, and creativity.”

The Bull City Woodshop (thebullcitywoodshop.com) offers a variety of programs for youth from third to twelfth grade, as well as workshops for community groups. Youngsters in grades three through six are taught woodworking safety and the use of hand tools such as handsaws, hammers, screwdrivers, and sandpaper. Seventh through twelfth graders work with a range of hand and power tools creating projects they build themselves in the woodshop and get to take home.

Bowens’ passion for woodworking started at a young age. “My father was a carpenter, and I always loved the smell of sawdust,” she said. “I enjoyed learning about different types of wood and just felt empowered by the ability to be handy and do things myself.” As an adult, Bowens pursued woodworking as a hobby.

She was inspired to combine her passion for mentoring and counseling children and her love of woodworking by a non-profit organization in Wilmington, NC called Kids Making It that mentors teens through woodworking education. Jimmy Pierce, founder and executive director of Kids Making It, encouraged Bowens to create the Bull City Woodshop based on his model.

The Bull City Woodshop is located in a working-class area of Durham and was named for the Durham Bulls, a Triple-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays and a proud hometown symbol. “Our vision is to offer kids exposure to woodworking as a craft and as a potential career option,” Bowens said. “The trade is in high demand, but most kids have low exposure to the industry. It would be great to see some of these kids become entrepreneurs, to start carpentry or handyman businesses of their own.”

Students in woodshop usually work first with soft woods, such as Pine and Poplar. As they progress, they may use Walnut, Oak, Hickory, Cedar, or Maple in their projects, depending on what’s available. Bull City Woodshop is a non-profit, funded entirely by donations, and the wood is donated by local supporters and area woodworkers.

“We teach them about color and tone, wood grains, and how to combine different species effectively in a project, how grain patterns complement each other and work together, and how finishes are absorbed differently from wood to wood,” Bowens said. “One of our volunteers is knowledgeable about wood anatomy, so they also learn about the effects the environment and harvesting techniques can have on wood.”

“These students learn a lot of life skills in addition to woodworking,” she adds. “Things like patience, perseverance, and conceptual thinking. It helps them in an academic sense too, because working with wood involves math and problem solving. I hope working with and learning about wood gives them an appreciation for nature and for the beauty and artistic qualities of wood too.”

Bowens’ aim is to help see the students through to a successful adult life. “The growth we have experienced in just two years – from a small makeshift facility in a garage with just three students to a 4,000 squarefoot warehouse that serves over 100 students, – tells me that this program was needed in the community. I’ve watched kids grow and blossom in the woodshop. Wood has that effect on people, you know?”