A Camaro Keeper

Fred and Pauline Wilson

I have been a classic Chevy enthusiast for many years and bought my first Chevy while still in high school - a ‘56 2-door.

In 1979, we (my wife Pauline and I) bought a ‘57 Chevy Bel Air and joined our local car club; Gem City Classics as well as Classic Chevy International. We enjoyed our ‘57 by attending car shows and road trips, but Pauline had always wanted a ‘69 Camaro convertible and I was beginning to lean toward that year Camaro, too.
 
In 1990, we went to a Camaro regional car show at General Motors in Dayton, Ohio. There we met Doug Moorhead, who was the former president of Classic Chevy International. He told us he had just bought the Camaro Club of America. During that conversation, Pauline told him of her desire to buy a ‘69 Camaro convertible and he said he would look into finding a good one for her.
 
On returning to the show the next day, we were met again by Doug who said he had found the perfect Camaro for us. He had talked to the owner, a local Dayton resident and found out the man had recently had back surgery and could no longer drive the car. After we talked to the gentleman and agreed on a price, we bought the Camaro. A cosmetic restoration had been done on the car just prior to when we purchased it. For the next few years we drove the car to many shows and were very proud when it won awards.
 
In 2001, I sold my last ‘57 Chevy and the Camaro became our only classic. Two years later, in 2003, we were going to make a few changes to the car, but the few changes soon became a major restoration. Our friend, Dick McKibben, also a ‘55 Chevy owner, offered his big garage for the work. With the help of Dick and other friends from Gem City Classics, we did a complete restoration. We chose Mercedes Medium Red with a black stripe, black cloth top, custom upholstery by Mad Dragon of Ohio and trunk and tire cover by Trim Parts of Lebanon, OH. It took us over a year to finish the car.
 
Our club hosted the 2005 International Chevy and Camaro show in West Chester, OH. This was the first event we showed our car at after it was completed. Since then we have completely redone the engine compartment and made other minor changes. We drive our Camaro to all the shows we attend so it’s not a trailer queen. In 2007, we went with other club members to the 2007 Classic Chevy International show in Hagerstown, MD and received a platinum award with 991 points and a Best Engine trophy. In 2007, at the Trim Parts Show, I was interviewed by Mothers Wax for ESPN and our Camaro won their choice for Best Car. In 2008, we won Best of Show at the Trim Parts Show in Lebanon, OH. The car has been nothing but fun and enjoyment to own.
 
All the hours of hard work and time spent in the garage on our car have been worthwhile. We think we will keep our beautiful Camaro forever.