Rebuilding A Local Business One Donation At A Time After Flood

HEALDSBURG, CA — After spending 16 years building his dream workshop by hand, a Healdsburg woodworker thought he’d finally turned the corner.

Brett Bjorkquist had started Fat Freddy’s Creations, a small business known for custom woodworking, mother-of-pearl inlay, and laser engraving.

He said business was booming, the books were in the black — and then, overnight, floodwaters surged nearly two feet deep, turning laser engravers into anchors and a long-awaited upswing into an unexpected rebuild.

The water destroyed two fully paid-off laser engravers and thousands of dollars in materials, setting the business back more than he could afford to be set back, according to Bjorkquist on his GoFundMe campaign page. So he went to the community for help replacing equipment, building a raised floor to prevent future flooding, and getting back to at least half capacity—one laser at a time.

“I had just gotten out of a really hard year and was finally in the green,” Bjorkquist said on his fundraising page. “Business was good. Things were looking up.”

Then came the storm. While Bjorkquist and his family were out of town, a major flood hit their side of Healdsburg. By morning, water had crept nearly two feet into the workshop Bjorkquist built —his “dream shop”—and stayed long enough to do real damage.

The biggest losses were the two laser engravers, the backbone of the business. Beyond the machines, the flood claimed materials and left the shop needing structural upgrades before work can safely resume, according to Bjorkquist. He said rebuilding will require new equipment and a raised floor designed to keep future floodwaters at bay.

Bjorkquist father has opened his own shop to keep business moving, if slowly. “I’m incredibly lucky to have that,” Bjorkquist said.

For now, Fat Freddy’s Creations is operating on family support, donations, and the hope for help jumpstarting the next chapter.