About Us
Church Artisans is a family business consisting of Father Gabriel Lee, Presbytera Akylina Lee, and Joshua Lee. Father Gabriel, who is an Orthodox Priest, handles all of the project planning, customer service, web site management and marketing. Presbytera Akylina (his wife) manages all of the financials. Joshua (his son) is the family woodworker and every product sold by Church Artisans is hand crafted by Joshua in our shop here in Port Townsend, WA, USA. The family all attend Dormition Orthodox Church where Father Gabriel is the assigned Priest.
We Understand
An Orthodox clergyman for several years, Father Gabriel understands the struggles that smaller churches face in working to obtain fine church furniture while staying within a budget. This is one reason why Church Artisans is structured so that each customer can design their piece while controlling the choice of hardwood and decorative elements so that the project can meet a specific budget.
Craftsmanship
Joshua has been involved in woodworking for over fifteen years. He has wide ranging experience from building custom homes to handcrafting furniture. His idea of a good time is twelve hours spent in his shop doing the work he loves. Blessed with an intuitive sense of design and joinery, Joshua can find a way to make a project work even it it appears impossible. Hand carving is the newest addition to his skill set and he has supplied many customers with extraordinary results when they allow him the freedom to design their carved elements for them. When Joshua is not in his shop, he is likely out walking his beloved Dobermans: Fred, Ethel, and Lucy.
We Find a Way
Church Artisans provides their customers a number of 'value added' services that do not usually appear on an invoice. We work with a customer through telephone calls, email, photos, etc. to help each customer bring to life their ideas for a church furniture piece. Often there are multiple revisions and redesigns throughout the process. Church Artisans is committed to finding a way to meet the needs of as many customers as possible through patient efforts and exploring every possibility.
