Chapter 4: A Grand Opening

September 23, 1968

The opening was a big success. I had to send Shelly off in the truck for more soft drinks and cookies before noon. The newspaper sent a reporter with a photographer and made a big deal about it. They claimed it was the first signs of urban renewal in the downtown. A four column picture of the station with me and Ted Reynolds shaking hands in front was featured on page three. I couldn't have hoped for better promotional help.

Ted was invited for dinner that evening. Understandably, he was in a very good mood.

"You've done one hell of a job getting that station up to standard, Rod. I can't believe how good it looks. It puts some of the newer ones on the interstate to shame. Congratulations!"

"Thanks. Everyone here pitched in full time. We were beat on Friday night, but it was worth it."

"I can't count the number of people who said somethin' about how clean it was. I almost hate to work in the shop for fear of messing it up," Shelly added.

"Well, we did everything we could to make it easy to keep clean. Jurgen came up with the idea for the non-skid epoxy floor. We already know it's a snap to clean."

"You even did the pit. That surprised me," Ted said.

"No point in lettin' it look grubby when we went to all the trouble to make the rest of the place pretty."

Ted nodded, then shaking his head. "That looked like a hell of a lot of work for just you four in two weeks."

"It was," Mom chimed in. "Now we just have to find some customers to make it all worthwhile."

"After watching the crowd today, I have a feeling that won't be a problem," Ted smiled.

He was right, but it didn't happen immediately. The old customers came back. Once they saw the new shop their first question was about how much the prices would go up to pay for it. They were pleasantly surprised when informed that in general, prices would remain the same as before the renovations.

Quickly, new business did find its way to our door. We had reopened in late September and by early December, we were profitable. When the four of us sat down for a meeting on the first Sunday of the month, Mom and I gave them the good news.

"Well, Mom has confirmed that November was our first profitable month. Also, we brought in quite a bit more new business than we had in October. We really want the repeat customers, so it will be a while before we know how well we're really doing.

"I've got a couple of ideas that I want to talk to you about," I said, looking around the table.

"First, I want to hire a part-time guy to help out around the station. You know, pump gas, maybe change a tire, clean plugs ... just the simple stuff. He'll need a driver's license and he has to be neat and clean."

"Why do we need another person?" Shelly asked.

"Because none of us have had more than one day off a week since we reopened in September. It's now December seventh. On top of that, we are all working long hours. Sooner or later, we're going to wear out. We need to bring someone into help spell us off."

Mom was nodding her agreement. The fact that I had already broached the idea with her earlier smoothed the way for the new plan.

"When do you want to do this?" Shelly asked again.

"First of January, if we can. I'll put an ad in the local paper. I'm sure we'll be swamped with applications. We should be able to find someone from that."

"Perhaps I can assist," Jurgen said in his quiet voice. "I have an acquaintance who works at the paper mill. His son is looking for work to earn money for college. I think he might be a good choice."

"Great. Let's talk to him. I want to meet his father too. I want to make sure they know what's expected of him. What's your friend's name?"

"Matti Numminen. His son's name is Miikka, but everyone calls him Mike. He is very clean and a big boy. I think he is seventeen years. I will talk to Matti if you will permit."

"Yes ... let's do that before we put the ad in the paper. It will save us time and money if he's a good prospect. Thank you Jurgen."

"You said you had a couple of things to talk about," Shelly jumped in again, this time with a smile.

"Yes. I am looking for a good quality used car. A four door sedan. It will have to be clean and in good running order. I want to use it as a courtesy car."

"What's a courtesy car?" Shelly asked.

"Something I read about in a magazine. We will use it to drive people to their work or home when they leave their car here for service or repair. If need be, we will pick them up at their work and bring them to the station when their car is ready. It will be a special service that no one else offers."

"What will it cost our customer?" Jurgen asked.

"Nothing. It's just one more thing to find and keep loyal customers. Mom and I have worked it out and we think it will be a good investment. Anyway, it's time I had a proper car and with the truck, we'll have two vehicles around for whatever we need. The truck will still be the workhorse for picking up parts and supplies."

"Jeeze, boss, that sounds pretty expensive. Are you sure you can afford it?" Shelly asked with a worried look.

"If Mom says we can, then ... we can," I grinned. I couldn't help but notice the relieved look on Shelly's face.

Mike Numminen and his father arrived at the station at five o'clock on Monday afternoon. Jurgen introduced them.

"Thanks for coming along Mr. Numminen," I greeted the father.

"It's Matti, and I'm surprised how young you are," said the big, smiling, blonde-haired man.

"Call me Rod. Yes, I guess I am. This must be Mike," I said, turning to an even bigger Numminen and holding out my hand.

The big youngster returned the gesture and nodded. "Yes, sir."

"What do you do at the mill, Matti?"

"I'm the maintenance manager. I came here with Valmet from Finland along with our new paper machine nearly ten years ago. We decided to stay when they needed someone who knew the equipment. My wife and family are very happy here," he said with a smile.

"Your son looks like prime football material," I grinned.

"Yes. He is a lineman ... offense and defense. He likes the hard work," an obviously proud father proclaimed.

"Well, I can't promise him anything that hard, but I can use a reliable, friendly young guy for work around the shop. Do you have a driver's license, Mike?"

"Yes, sir. I've been driving since last year."

"Any accidents or tickets?" I asked.

"No sir. I would lose my driving privileges if I had either," he said looking at his father.

"OK. There will be some driving duties and I need a safe driver," I explained. I turned to the father.

"Are you OK with Miikka working here?"

"Yes. I like the look of your station and Jurgen says you are a very good manager. That's good enough for me," he said with a smile.

"Well, I'll have to thank Jurgen twice then. Once for recommending your son and once for saying good things about the boss," I laughed.

Rod turned to the younger man. "Mike, your hours are Friday from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm and Saturday from 9:00 am to 5:30 pm. We pay $3.00 per hour and time and a half for overtime. Will that be OK?

"Yes, sir. That sounds great," Mike answered enthusiastically. We shook hands on it.

"Are you familiar with Volvos," Matti asked me as we walked out of the garage.

"Yes. There were a couple of them on the base in Germany when I was there. A 1961 544 and a '64 P1800. Good solid machines. Simple and built for tough duty."

"My wife has an older 544 and it needs to be tuned and serviced regularly. I would appreciate your advice on it. She likes it, but I'm wondering if I should sell it or keep it."

"Happy to do that for you. I really enjoy working on European machines. I should be able to give you an opinion on it."