By Lee Kieseling

At any given time when one drives by the Bowers' Summerville home it is a perfectly normal occurrence to see some saw horses with a bright orange chord snaking across the lawn to feed a variety of power tools, together with pieces of the latest carpentry project at some stage of completion strewn about. At first, when one sees the giant truck in the driveway, or the occasional muscle car, and considering that Matt Bowers is a burly young man sporting a toned physique and the giveaway crew cut revealing that he serves in the Armed Forces, this array of tools is not so unusual. But if one slows down to observe just what is going on at the Bowers' home he or she would discover the 5'3" 110 pound dynamo that is Jennifer Bowers heaving those power tools around with skill that would make Tim Taylor jealous.

Jennifer developed her skill in working with wood as an employee at a furniture factory some years back but attributes her love for the art of carpentry to her father's guidance as a "Jack of all Trades" in the construction industry. Fortunately for her, Bowers learned a variety of skills at her father's knee and has put them to practical use during her marriage as an on again, off again, single parent during times when her husband is deployed. She recalls occasions when, out of necessity, she replaced a broken sink disposal, retiled floors, and replaced a cracked and broken toilet all on her own. Though she has the skills to complete these practical household projects, this young mother of two has an eagerness to tackle challenges that require good power tools and prefers to work with wood.

Among her recent projects Bowers has built a bed for her daughter, added a deck to her home, and both her front porch and new deck sport two oversized Adirondack style chairs built with an impressive sturdiness. Anyone who sits in these well-built chairs and observed the quality of workmanship inquires as to where the Bowers got them. Consequently, Jennifer has filled requests from family and friends to build these outdoor chairs of pine or cedar "just for fun" and is now considering putting her skills to use to build a cottage industry using the chairs and the matching tables designed by Bowers as a staple to draw people as customers. These popular chairs take about a day to assemble once the wood is cut and Jennifer plans to sell them unfinished and unpainted to keep the solid chairs at a reasonable price.

This do it yourself carpenter speaks lovingly of different types woods as a seamstress might speak of quality silks and velvets. She has purchased and stored various types of unusual woods with lush grains for more refined and detailed undertakings such as the creation of humidors created of specialty woods. "It's very exact," Bowers says, "and time consuming. People have an expectation of quality and a humidor has to close with a precise seal." As many mothers, she finds that making time for her craft is difficult but has still managed to donate her time to construct 38 Chief boxes, an important part of the Navy ritual as one earns the title of Navy Chief. A Chief box holds information, notes, words of wisdom and various tidbits collected by the men and women in the Navy who achieve the rank of Navy Chief. These boxes are both designed and constructed by Bowers. She also has experience in the construction of many types of trinket boxes made of exotic woods together with the creation of Purple Heart boxes to contain and display the medal given to a soldier for sustaining a wound in battle.

To the casual passer-by, Jennifer appears to be just another busy stay at home mom but after one morning cup of coffee with her, I see one of the Steel Magnolias this country has created. She lives a solitary life far away from her family when her husband is serving our country, and she stoically raises her children to the best of her ability giving of her time and talent to support the achievements of her husband's fellow Navy men and women as well as to community projects. She uses her talents and abilities to create convenience and beauty in her home and looks to the day when her love for woodcraft might be a viable supplement to her family income so her husband Matt, a Navy Chief himself, might be able to make the decision to retire from the service.

Maybe it's the innate strength of the young or maybe it's a positive outlook but as with many created of this recent war generation, Jennifer Bowers is an everyday person who chooses to live her life as an active participant; on the go and with a passion for building something better. (Lee Kieseling can be reached for questions or comments at lkieseling@aol.com)