Patterson man recognized for carpentry skill

Dwayne Broussard, a resident and business owner in Patterson, has been invited to speak at the Restoration RX: A Morning with the Masters event 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday.
The event is sponsored by the Vieux Carre Commission Foundation and is taking place at the French Quarter Visitor Center of Jean Lafitte national Historical Park and Preserve, 419 Decatur Street, New Orleans.
Broussard’s business is Dwayne Broussard Woodworking and Design LLC, 2600 La. 182 in Patterson. He has been in business for 40 years.
Broussard said he got his start in woodworking from his Shop II class in high school. His teacher was Dwight Smith.
“In the second half of the school year we started our projects and if someone got to a point where they didn’t know the next step, Mr. Smith would stop the whole class so we could figure it out,” Broussard said. “I was the first one every time to have the answer and Mr. Smith would say ‘you heard the man’.”
Smith awarded Broussard the award for best student in Shop II that year.
“That was it,” Broussard said. “I knew that was my calling. It’s my passion. I love what I do.”
His passion sometimes takes him into the swamp to find the wood for his projects. Cypress wood he collects himself is crafted by him in his shop.
Broussard has had his work displayed in the New Orleans Museum of Arts in an exhibit titled “Rise of the Trades — Creole Building Arts of New Orleans.” He also has been a Louisiana artist for the Jazz and Heritage Festival for the last 20 years.
This is his first time being invited by the Vieux Carre Commission Foundation to speak. He is titled a Master Carpenter and Mill-wright.
The Vieux Carre Commission Foundation works directly with the Vieux Carre Commission in preserving and protecting the historical architectural architecture in the New Orleans French Quarter. The foundation provides the commission with needed equipment and supplies and also funds and undertakes projects for the benefit of the agency, such as sponsoring the Restoration RX: A Morning with the Masters event.
The event will feature a Master Blacksmith, Darryl Reeves, a Master Plasterer, Jeff Poree, and Broussard as the Master Carpenter and Mill-wright. There also will be a permitting and regulation expert and an architect who will speak about the balance between modernization and historic character. This event is free and open to the public.
“I will be able to sit down and answer questions and offer advice to the residents of the French Quarter,” Broussard said.
Restoration of parts of historical buildings is not new to Broussard. He was hired by a Tulane professor to restore and replace spindles on a staircase in the Civil Engineer building on Tulane campus.
“I turn my own spindles by hand. I love to lathe,” Broussard said.
Broussard also restored and customized a staircase at the Historic Trowbridge House located at 808 First St. in Franklin.
Broussard said, “I’m just a Cajun from the Morgan City area,” but his art and skills are recognized.
He is currently building a black walnut English library for a home in New Orleans, complete with a rolling ladder.
“It’s 20 feet wide and covers the whole wall with 13 foot ceilings. It’s just beautiful,” Broussard said.