'I still believe in a handshake and man's word'
COSHOCTON − Stephen Eaton has acquired several nicknames in his life such as Bear and the Key Guy. However, most know him as their friendly neighborhood locksmith.
At the age of 67, Eaton doesn't look to retire anytime soon. He celebrates 35 years in business in April.
He had a colorful life before becoming a locksmith and some might be surprised to hear the stories he has from his years of service. Being a locksmith might not sound interesting to some, but they probably haven't had guns pulled on them as part of their average work day.
There's been other locksmiths in Coshocton County, but he's the only one currently active. The next closest he knows of are in Zanesville and New Philadelphia.
"I'm a glutton for punishment, I guess," he said with a trademark laugh on being the last man standing. "I like talking to people and helping them out. Sometimes I get thank-yous."
The Coshocton native tooled around the country on a motorcycle for awhile after getting out of the U.S. Army. He lived for a time in Atlantic Beach, North Carolina, and worked as a carpenter. It's where his bike broke down and after winning two cases of beer from guessing sports scores, it seemed like a good location to stop.
"I said I like this place so I stayed there about five years," Eaton said.
He eventually drifted back to Coshocton because of family and took a locksmith course. Around the same time, Sam Lewis was looking to sell his locksmith business. Eaton got a bank loan for the majority and borrowed the rest from his mother and grandmother. They said he didn't have to pay them back, but he eventually did.
Eaton said it was an example of God working in strange ways, but the Man upstairs has always guided him. While he doesn't put it on people, Eaton said his vocation has allowed him to talk about his faith from time to time with customers.
"I did work for one fellow with stage four pancreatic cancer. I told him, 'I don't normally do this to customers because I don't know how you are, but I want to talk to you about Jesus because you're going to be meeting Him or not meeting Him real soon,'" Eaton recalled. "Some people just need a little help. I'm not a fire-breathing gospel preacher, but I do talk to them about God."
Eaton installs locks and deadbolts on doors, can open safes and can unlock doors if someone is locked out or loses a key. He can still do older model cars, but newer cars with computerized keys require different equipment.
While Eaton sees what he does as helping people, he admits to seeing a lot of ugly. He's often been called to change locks following a divorce or eviction. He's had six guns pulled on him over the years and people attacking him with everything from knives to baseball bats and hammers because they didn't want to leave a home. Often a sheriff's deputy will go with him on such jobs or he calls them for help.
"One guy was creative, he put a swivel on the end of a pipe with a chain," Eaton remembered. He then knocked on some nearby wood for luck and proclaimed, "I remain undefeated."
He recalled another time when a man called about being locked out of his house. Eaton went, opened the door and an old lady was standing there. It was the man's grandmother and he was looking to rob her for drug money.
Because of incidents like that, Eaton now verifies who owns a home before working on it. He guesses he's too trusting, but much like being an old-fashioned locksmith he's from a bygone era.
"I'm a leftover, I still believe in a handshake and man's word. It's a dying thing. If somebody does me wrong, then I consider them less than a man, it's real easy," Eaton said.
For more information, you can reach Eaton Locksmithing at 740-623-0526.
Leonard Hayhurst is a community content coordinator and general news reporter for the Coshocton Tribune with more than 15 years of local journalism experience and multiple awards from the Ohio Associated Press. He can be reached at 740-295-3417 or llhayhur@coshoctontribune.com. Follow him on Twitter at @llhayhurst.
This article originally appeared on Coshocton Tribune: 'I still believe in a handshake and man's word'
