If anyone could have come close to superhero status in George Berry’s childhood, it might have been the “air conditioner man.”
“My parents bought a new house in Martinez in 1971, and it did not have air conditioning,” said Berry, whose G-Force Heating and Air Conditioning business celebrates its 25th anniversary July 30.
But the neighbor’s house did. Experiencing the joys of air conditioning in Georgia’s sweltering heat convinced Berry’s parents that they needed to install a system, he said.
Fifty years ago, air conditioning systems were different, and they required a Freon update each summer. That’s where the superhero came in. Tempers flared and family members started to get on each other’s nerves in that window of time before the air conditioner technician arrived with that Freon boost. That sometimes led to Berry getting into trouble, too.
Once the Freon levels were restored and the unit was chilling like it was supposed to, everyone was nicer to each other, he said, and he wasn’t getting into trouble with his parents.
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“I always related the air conditioner guy to being happy,” he said.
Berry started the business part time. His daughter, Kristen Nash, who was five at the time, came up with the name G-Force because she said George was the force behind the business. Over time, however, Berry said he realized that God was the force behind it.
As time passed, the business grew until part-time wasn’t an option any longer. It was a leap of faith. It proved to be the right decision, even in 2018 when a bizarre foot infection put him out of commission for several months while he underwent IV therapies and hyperbaric treatments.
The infection was so severe that the possibility of amputating his foot had been mentioned. Berry refused that, telling doctors prior to a surgery to remove the infection that he was going into surgery with two feet, and he’d better come out with two feet. Doctors did not amputate.
Other business owners rallied around him during his illness.
“Other A/C companies called to help me out,” he said.
Berry bounced back and watched his business grow.
In February 2019, his younger brother, Brian, left Fort Gordon to join G-Force. The pandemic kicked his business up another notch, he said.
“We’ve been so busy since March 2020,” he said. “People were home more.”
To learn more about G-Force Heating and Air Conditioning, visit https://www.facebook.com/GForceHeatingAndAir
Charmain Z. Brackett is the Features Editor for The Augusta Press. Reach her at charmain@theaugustapress.com.
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