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Everyone once in while a person comes into my life who stands out from
the rest. Every once in a while I meet person with experiences, accomplishment, talent, integrity, community spirit and a sense of humor who makes me think "Hey, what a
great guy."
Omri Millul, owner of The Woodchucker is such a person.
Although I've known Omri and his wife, Karen, for over 15 years, having interplayed with them at various public gatherings and occasionally socially, I hadn't really gotten to know him until I began creating this Woodchucker website for him.
The thing which stands out most about Omri is his ever present persistence for excellence and attention to detail. He has been demanding, in a pleasant and low-key fashion, for perfection in regard to his website. But, more importantly for home owner, architect, contractor or builder, I can say that he applies that same attention to detail and quest for perfection in his own profession of woodworking and
fine furniture construction.
I can only hope that my attempt to present The Woodchucker within this website
does justice to the beautiful workmanship and fine woodwork that exemplifies what Omri Millul does in his
profession.
A brief profile of Omri
Millul
 Childhood
and travel
Omri Millul was born in Israel and grew up in a kibbutz. He attended an agricultural school learning bee keeping and dairy farming. He has always loved to work with his hands. During the 1973 Yom Kippur war with Egypt, Omri served as an Israeli Army tank commander who pushed to within 50 kilometers of Cairo during that war. A few years after the war, in 1976, Omri had that youthful wonderlust which brought him to the United States.
He and two friends traveled 'east to west, south to north' around the States and Canada in a van. They slept in the van, cooked on a two-burner Coleman stove, at campgrounds around the country, and ultimately, he ended up in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania out of money and very much in need of work.
"I
did all the grunt work but I learned the trade."
As with many successful people, Omri started at the bottom sweeping floors. A friend got him a job in a Philadelphia woodworking shop during the week. On weekends, at another shop, he worked for free to became
proficient at stripping furniture for refinishing. As he described it "I did all the grunt work but I learned the trade."
Because he loved to work with his hands, but lacked formal education in design and blueprint reading, he took a number of semesters of drafting and interior design and other related subjects at the prestigious Philadelphia College of Art.
Woodwork
shop foreman
After a few years he became shop foreman at the Philadelphia woodworking shop. Unfortunately, the owner of the shop went bankrupt and he went to work for another shop. In 1985, one of the people he worked with at the original shop approached him to start their own woodworking shop. They stayed in business together until 1989 when his partner moved away from the Philadelphia
area.
Along the way Omri and Karen got married and bought a house in Fortescue, New Jersey which they used as a weekend get away. In 1990, Omri opened his own shop at its current location in Cedarville, NJ and they moved to their house on the Delaware Bay full time.
"I
like to see it all come together."
When asked what part of the woodworking business he likes best, Omri's immediate response
was "I like to see it all come together. To take a raw material and make something beautiful and functional. Something that you enjoy looking at. That's what I like best about the business. That's my favorite part. I enjoy doing the working, making things, more than I do running the business.
"They
need to understand that it is a process."
When asked what suggestions he can give a home owner regarding the first things they can do for a custom project, he said "They need to understand that it is a process. A project doesn't get built over night. It takes time as the process develops."
"Each
wood has different characteristics."
Omri has often said that every job is different; every customer has different desires and each wood is different. "Each wood has different characteristics. Some types of wood have better characteristics for different functions. Each job must be considered for its own purpose. The hardware, the joinery and the finish is as important as the type of wood."
"People
need to do homework."
"People need to do some homework. They need to ask lots of questions.
They need to read a bit. People need to look closely at the hardware. Often metal and plastic is better than just metal. How drawers are attached is important."
"They
need to consult an expert."
"People need to talk to professionals with good reputations,
professionals they can trust and whose works they admire. Timely
deliveries which meet the schedule of the contractor or home owner
are very important. I take pride in never having been penalized for
lateness of delivery. I don't bump customers and I deliver when I
say I will."
Community
Service
In addition to being the owner of The Woodchucker,
a custom
woodworking shop, Omri Millul is a member of the Fortescue, NJ fire
company; he is a member of the Fortescue Water Rescue dive team and
a member of the Fairton, NJ fire company. Omri has
participated in dozens of water rescues and fire company operations.
Omri is an instructor level II in the Cumberland County Fire
Academy.
He cares about
his community as much as he does his superior woodworking.
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