HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1996-06-19, Page 10New life
In addition to his regular day to day work, Al McLellan, left, shop foreman at McNeil's Auto
Body, spent a good portion of his time restoring this 1929 Whippet, for Dr. Mark Woldnick.
The car, owned by Dr. Woldnick's father, had been purchased by them in the late 60s as a
project for them. The Whippet was built in Oshawa. This particular model is especially rare
in that it is one of a few of the six cylinder variety that were in Ontario. It is capable of
speeds up to 55 miles an hour.
Adok‘wkwft4ibv.•or•••"-•41)-
Display Space Available ) tFrom 2' x 2' x 4' Pegboard I Pay by the square foot/per month 0
i BLYTH GENERAL z 5 1
rA STORE z
K 2
FA (519) 523-9785
VENDORS WANTED
far .
"NEW
COUNTRY MARKET"
Space available $1.00 per foot
frontage x 10' deep
BLYTH GENERAL STORE 0 Aku 104 gh (519) 523-9785 0 VP t% gft
0
CRAFTERS WANTED HEALTH ON THE HILL
A Review of activities at
SEAFORTH COMMUNITY HOSPITAL
OB PRE-ADMIT CLINIC if you are an expectant Mom 34-38 weeks
pregnant and planning to deliver your baby at Seaforth Community
Hospital, please plan to attend this Clinic for sharing of admission infor-
mation Thursday, June 20th at 7:00 p.m. in Conference Rm. 2 of
Seaforth Community Hospital. To pre-register, contact Grace Dolmage
at 527-1650 Ext. 219.
PERINATAL INFORMATION SESSION geared to interested and
expectant couples/persons to be held at Seaforth Community Hospital,
Conf. Rm. 2 Thursday, June 20th at 7:30 p.m. AGENDA: Tour of
Birthing Room. In addition, any questions/concerns can be discussed
with Facilitators, Dr. Janet Zettel and Kay Mailloux, RN, OB
Teamleader.
EAST HURON LONG TERM CARE (LTC) Committee invite and
encourage you to join them Thursday, June 27, 1996 10:00 Hrs. in the
Board Room of the Hospital. Guest Speaker: Debbie Selkirk, Chair LTC
Committee District Health Council (DHC) & Provider Member on DHC.
TOPIC: "Huron County Merge with Perth County LTC Planning
Committee, Role of East Huron's LTC Committee". There is immi-
nent change expected in September 1996.
DIABETIC EDUCATION offered by Nurse Educator, Dianne Wood,
Reg.N. each Thursday 1-3 p.m. by appointment. Self referrals accepted.
No fee. Topics include: Diet, Exercise, Insulin, Oral Agents, Monitoring
Technique, Travel, Days of Illness, Foot Care, Management. To pre-reg-
ister, call 527-1650 Ext. 219.
A big Thank You to all the participants (riders and pledgers) of the
recent "Big Bike Ride" Fundraiser. It was another big success raising
$2,989.00 for Heart and Stroke; also for being the top sponsors in all of
Huron County.
PAGE 10. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19, 1996
McNeil's staff restores rare '29 Whippet
By Bonnie Gropp
Dreams can come true.
It's been a long time coming, but
for Dr. Mark Woldnick and his
father William, a dream project,
begun in 1969 is finally a reality. A
1929 Whippet, purchased by the
senior Woldnick, a resident of
Parry Sound, has been restored to
its old glory at McNeils Auto Body
in Brussels.
This Whippett, which had toured
the roads until 1957, was created
the same year Mr. Woldnick was
born. That connection was part of
the attraction to the automobile. Dr.
Woldnick, who with his father and
brother, have shared a passion for
restoring classic cars, primarily
those of the 1950 and 60s, says that
after starting work on the Whippet,
they hit some roadblocks.
"These types of projects, due to
finances and time, tend to get start-
ed and stopped."
It seemed the Whippet might be
stalled indefinitely, then fortuitu-
ousy Mr. Woldnick met Don
McNeil and the idea took on new
life. "He really impressed my
father," said Woldnick. "With a job
such as this, you want someone
working on it, whom you know
will do good work. Dad felt confi-
dent Don would do this right."
In 1994 the car was trailered to
McNeils and research into parts
began. Through contacts from clas-
sic automobile associations, maga-
zines and business cards, McNeil
and his staff unearthed the rare
treasures needed for a genuine
replication.
McNeil says, replacements for
some of the broken and missing
pieces on the Whippet were located
in Provost, Albert and closer to
home in Gorrie. One of the cowl
lights was discovered in McNeil's
own stock of auto parts. Other fea-
tures had to be remanufactured.
With shop foreman, Alvin
McLellan, concentrating most of
his time to the job, things proceed-
ed. The body was taken off the
frame. It was •stripped to the bare
metal after all the colour schemes
were noted, including the original
pin striping.
McNeil says the wood in the roof
and upper frame structure, to which
metal panels are nailed, was
decayed. "When the wood rots
nothing will open or close in these
old cars. The wood is actually hold-
ing it all together."
Hank Tenpas, a local contractor,
patterned new wood, which was
then used to realign the body. "He
did just a great job. He was running
back and forth constantly to check
and make sure everything was just
the way it needed to be."
The fenders, lights, running
boards, hood panels were all pre-
pared and refinished in separate
stages of the restoration. The frame
and axels were refinished along
with the wooden spoked wheels for
the undercarriage restoration. Four
For those who have not yet
become involved, a Brussels
Homecoming meeting is planned
for June 20, 7:30 p.m. at the Brus-
sels Legion.
During recent sessions it was
decided homecoming souvenirs
would go on sale Dee. J, hopefully
at the Thrift Shop.
Advertising has been purchased
with the Huron Tourism Associa-
tion Lottery Calendar.
colours completed the body and
fenders.
With the exterior shaping up, the
next step was having the interior
reworked. McNeil asked Brian
McKnight of Brussels Upholstery if
he was interested in giving the task
a try. "I think he was a little reluc-
tant at first; I've had him do some
small jobs for me before but noth-
ing of this size. He did just an
excellent job of duplicating the
original."
The original colour and material
was seen after being removed from
under the trim panels. A close
match was found in Toronto.
Inside and out the finished pro-
ject is a head-turner. It took a total
of 400 hours over the course of two
years to make it that way.
"Working on something like this
takes many patient hours, "McNeil
says.
But obviously hours that every-
one enjoyed spending. "It's like a
drive into the past.
And for some, a dream come
true.
Signs "Calling Everyone to Brus-
sels '97" will be purchased from
Michelle and Don McNeil.
A Saturday afternoon Kids Street
is in the works with cotton candy,
popcorn and pony rides.
A list of other activities include
the school reunion, old car show
and BBQ.
To see just what is planned for
the community in '97, residents are
invited to attend the June 20 meet-
ing.
Homecoming group
meets this Thursday