Master: Steve Sullivan Apprentice: Jason Sckupakus Dorchester County Master-Apprentice Grant Recipients 2008
The craftsmanship of woodworker Steve Sullivan harkens back to his childhood and his grandfather’s handmade chairs and birdhouses. Sullivan’s martin houses are based on local designs, whether the traditional Whitehaven House, miniature versions of area homes or what he dubs “martin mansions.” Apprentice Jason Sckupakus, raised in Philadelphia by his carpenter grandfather, has always worked with his hands. Sullivan and Sckupakus’ martin houses are not just an ornament on the flat landscape of the Eastern Shore, but they also help the purple martin population to flourish— which keeps the ever-present mosquito population down. “My feeling is, if you’ve built a house for something, you’ve done something, whether it’s a Martin or a crow,” Sullivan said. “They all have uses, purposes.”
