Mark grabs firewood for the bonfire himself and his wife, Melissa Whitley, hosts every Friday night with some friends at his home in Smiths Grove on Friday, March 13. Mark said he found the quote, “When times are dark, build a crackling fire, and gather good people,” in a poem written by Silas House. He said he posted an image of the quote on social media, and Silas House reposted it on his Instagram.
Striving for peace
Mark Whitley strived for peace as long as he could remember. Growing up in Barren County, Kentucky, he said he gained values from his mother on what was wrong and what was right. He did not understand why people did not get along. A part of this comes from his past. His grandfather, Arthur B. Alexandar, Jr., was a pacifist and a large advocate against war in Barren County. Alexandar was drafted during WWII and worked with searchlights that detected enemy aircraft at night. He never used a weapon during his time in the war. Mark works hard to keep those values alive through the roles he fills as a father, husband, woodworker and musician.
“I’ve spent my life longing for peace. I’ve never understood how war ever made anything better,” Whitley said.
Mark looks at how old the tree in his yard was on Thursday, March 26 after it died from termites. “You will make great furniture for me one day,” Mark said to the tree.
Mark cleans parts of a desk he glued together for a client in his woodworking shop in Smiths Grove, Kentucky on Tuesday, March 10. He said he only had 10 minutes before the glue starts to dry.
Mark’s life has always been surrounded by wood. Mark said he grew up in a cabinet shop near Smiths Grove where he now owns property surrounded by trees and a creek nearby. After one of the trees in his yard had died, he brought part of it to his woodworking shop in the basement of his home.
Mark said he works in his studio from 8:15 to noon every weekday. “My whole reason for making furniture is to add beauty to the world in my own way,” Mark said.
Mark said woodworking was not initially his plan in life, and he received a bachelor’s degree in Peace and Religious Studies at Chapman University in 1998 with plans to become a minister. When the ministry did not work out, he said he found a knack for making furniture. His talent started to gain recognition over time, which earned him awards and gave him opportunities to show his work across the country. He prefers custom work over shows now. He finds making furniture as his way to bring peace to people.
Mark said he got the peace sign tattoo in 2001 after he graduated college in 1998 at Chapman University with a bachelor’s degree in peace and religious studies.“My love of the peace sign, which originated to represent nuclear disarmament, is my outward representation of my beliefs,” Mark said.
“My whole reason for making furniture is to add beauty to the world in my own way,” Whitley said.
Mark’s neighbor, Alex Lewis, and Mark load a parts of a bed onto Mark’s side by side for Lewis at Mark Whitley’s studio in Smith Grove, Kentucky on Thursday, March 26. Lewis asked Mark to build an extra bed for their home but they will not be able to build it until the mattress comes in.
Mark and Melissa Whitley met at a Super Bowl party in 2001 when he was a part of the band Dry Land Fish as a musician. Mark said he remembers they would just “goof off” at Melissa’s grandmother’s farm with a four-wheeler. That inspired Mark to buy property with the intention for Melissa and himself to live.
Mark tries his motorbike he built with his wife, Melissa Whitley, at his property in Smith’s Grove. Mark said he does not normally ride motorbikes but thinks that it is fun to make. He said he took it to an art exhibit, but the bike has not his left his property since.
Melissa and Mark married in 2005 in their home Mark built for them. Melissa works at Barren County’s Hope Harbor and comes home from work around dinnertime. Mark will often cook meals for Melissa and their 17-year-old son, Briar.
Mark and Melissa prepare for dinner at their home in Smiths Grove, Kentucky on Thursday, March 26. Mark was preparing a smoked chicken with baked beans, mashed potatoes and rolls for himself and Melissa. Mark’s song, "I Can be the Wife,” tells about how he takes on some traditional roles of the wife.
Melissa and Mark host a bonfire every Friday night since COVID-19 at their place in Smith Grove. “We (Melissa and Mark) have become closer because of it,” Mark said.
Mark and Melissa go inside their home after they turn everything off for the night from the bonfire in Smiths Grove, Kentucky on March 13. Mark said he built the home by himself for his family in 2003.
In his free time, Mark is a musician and performs locally. He said the songs he writes come to him as soon as he wakes up, and he keeps them in his head before he writes them down. These songs revolve around his friends and his family. He said he memorizes all his lyrics and only has a list of songs he looks at every time he performs.
Mark sings at the White Squirrel Brewery in Bowling Green, Kentucky on Saturday, Feb. 21. “All of my songs tell a story,” Mark said.
When Mark played with Dry Land Fish, it became a popular band in Bowling Green. This made Mark well-known in Bowling Green, but the band disbanded in the early 2000s.
Mark sings at the White Squirrel Brewery in Bowling Green, Kentucky on Saturday, Feb. 21. He said he memorizes his lyrics and looks at a list of songs instead of lyrics. Sometimes he has to memorize 35 songs. “35 songs is like memorizing a book of lyrics, and I refuse to use lyrics,” Mark said.
An audience member during a White Squirrel Brewery concert Mark played at asked him to perform for their 50th birthday party. The birthday party featured a band from Nashville, Cage the Elephant. Cage the Elephant said they remembered Mark from Dryland Fish when they were growing up. They wanted him to record music with them in Nashville.
Carol and Kevin Crowe listen to Mark sing during Kevin’s 50th Birthday party in Bowling Green, Kentucky on Saturday, March 28. Kevin invited Mark to sing for his birthday when he saw him play at White Squirrel. Kevin said that Mark reminded him of John Prine. Kevin’s favorite song of Mark's is “The Giant.”
After Mark and Melissa have dinner, Mark goes to his porch to smoke a cigarette. He likes to watch the trees bloom in the spring. “I love it when the buds come out,” Mark said. “Love it.”
“I try to go through life treating people and the world with kindness,” Mark said.
