Dave - Technician

Dave likes to go FAST, although he admits his "top speed" has come down with age.  Knowing this, you can probably guess what his all time favourite GM vehicle would be... a new Z06 Corvette in yellow.  His '81 Camaro wasn't exactly a Corvette but Dave said it was still fun to drive and sounded good.   Dave began working at West Park on March 18 in 1992.  The staff Christmas outings to Grand Forks are some of Dave's favourite memories while working at West Park.  When Dave's not looking after customer vehicles he is busy building and flying radio controlled planes.  He has even built one out of the corrugated plastic pole signs that GM sends us for promos!

Sunflower Festival

We just finished enjoying a fun-filled weekend at the Sunflower Festival and the weather couldn't have been better. It was hot and sunny all weekend long! We applaud the many volunteers who made the festival a big success. Thank you to the people who stopped to say “hello” at the venues where West Park had vehicles on display. Thank you also to the guys in our shop who worked hard detailing 23 West Park vehicles for various festival events!

Parade spectators in front of West Park.

Queen contestant, Erica Dueck, daughter of Brad, one of our sales people.

Nurasham Male, the Queen Contestant that West Park sponsored.

One of several of our vehicles used for VIPs.

Our display at the Legends Car Show

A Little About Lisa - Service Advisor

Lisa is West Park's Service Advisor. She's one of the smiling faces that will greet you as you pull into our drive-through service bay. Lisa joined our team in May of this year, just in time to tear up the go-carting track with our staff at Speed World, one of her West Park highlights so far. She says the best part about her job in the short time she's been with us, is the people she works with. People who know Lisa, know she is not a "van kinda girl" (as she put it), even though that's what she is currently driving. Lisa used to drive a GMC Jimmy and liked it so she wishes to own something like it again some day.

Meet Marsha - Warranty Administrator and Closeout Clerk

Marsha is our Warranty Administrator and Closeout Clerk. Although Marsha is badly out-numbered by the guys in the service department at West Park, she stated, “The best part of my job is working with some really great co-workers and dealing with customers.” Her history with GM started right after high school when she worked at a GM dealership in Alberta and donned some overalls, doing oil changes on stock units! Marsha remembers when she came out from underneath a vehicle and a customer exclaimed, “You're a girl!” Not surprising then, that this girl was willing to accept a position at West Park almost 9 years ago, even after seeing what would be her office. It was not a cushy space. Marsha says, “My #1 highlight at West Park was when we did the renovation and I got a new office. I got to move out of the old closet!” When Marsha moved from Alberta to Manitoba she was driving a little 1981 Chevrolet Chevette. This may not have been her favourite GM vehicle but it ought to be a close second! Her little Chevette moved her from Alberta to Manitoba in the dead of winter and it never left her stranded. That's impressive. “The Enclave is one of my favourite GMs now. It's classy, stylish looking, handles well and is roomy.”

Cornie - Shop Foreman and West Park "Senior"

Cornie is the last of our "senior" members to be introduced.  He also began working at West Park in the fall of 1968, when West Park was opened.  Cornie was a technician until 1973, then the Shop Foreman, and in 1977 became the Service Manager.  Several years later, when many things were becoming more computerized and less hands-on for the Service Managers, Cornie realized he preferred the more hands-on work.  He made a switch back to Shop Foreman, working together with the technicians to solve challenging problems.  Some of these solutions have since been implemented across the country by GM. 

After being at West Park for this many years, Cornie has seen many changes take place in West Park as a business and also in the vehicles that come through the shop.  He is always eager to continue learning in order to stay current in new technologies, tools and procedures.  During the warmest months of 1973, when our vehicles were not ordered stock with air conditioning, Cornie installed 23 air conditioning units!  After the realization of air conditioning's quickly growing popularity, in 1974 about 80% of the vehicles West Park stocked came with air conditioning and West Park became the first air conditioning repair shop in Southern Manitoba.  Even working on ignitions has changed many times throughout the years, from points ignitions, to high energy ignitions, to computer controlled ignitions.  Some of the vehicles that stand out in Cornie's mind when he thinks of the evolution of vehicles over his career are gravel trucks, beet trucks, school buses, CSP Foods trucks, and Freightway trucks.  Even the price of vehicles has changed immensely! Cornie chuckles, "The first GM vehicle I ever purchased when I was just 17, was a 1964, red, hard- top Impala for $2495. In 1966 I bought a new Pontiac Grand Parisienne for $3800.  I got married that year and used this car for my honeymoon. It was one of only two like it in Southern Manitoba.  In 1971 I bought my next vehicle for $4100 and my vehicle after that, only 4 years later - the price doubled!"  With the evolution of vehicles there have also been many changes required in the tools used at the shop.  For example, when Cornie started working in the shop there was only 1 hoist and it was used primarily for service jobs and tire repairs.  All other repairs were done on jack stands.  Today we have a total of 8 hoists in our shop which are used for almost all types of service work. 

Some of Cornie's highlights from his years at West Park are the staff and family Christmas weekends in Grand Forks years ago, the ever changing work in the shop and the many people that he has meets while working at West Park. 

Since we've come up with a "retirement project" for our other "senior" employees, it only seems reasonable to come up with one for Cornie, too, that is IF we ever let him retire!  We're dreaming of a finely tuned, late 60s muscle car and we need someone who has first- hand experience to get it running the way it did when it rolled off the assembly line.

Our Last New Pontiac Sale

A point in West Park's history... As part of its restructuring last year, GM announced that the Pontiac brand would be discontinued. After selling Pontiacs since we first opened in 1968, yesterday we sold what will most likely be our last new Pontiac - a 2010 Vibe.

A Bit About Bernie - Technician

Bernie is another one of our “senior” employees. Again, not because of his age but because he has been at West Park since its beginning! Bernie has been one of our technicians for 42 years, preparing our new and used vehicles for the road. That makes for over 10 000 vehicles Bernie has worked on. He has often sacrificed his lunch hour or worked evenings if need be to get customers on the road in their new vehicle. Having spent that many years in our shop as a technician and having worked on that many vehicles, it is interesting to find out Bernie's pick as one of his favourite, “practical” GM vehicles. Any guesses? It's the Chevy Equinox! He likes the Equinox because it is good-looking, practical, easy to get in and out and affordable. Another of Bernie's GM favourites is the 1956 Chevy Bel Air, 2 door, hard top which he owned. It was a sharp-looking turquoise and white car and according to Bernie, “It was fast!” And how could a guy not pick this car as one of his favourites when it was the beauty that took him and his new bride on their honeymoon?! We haven't talked to Bernie about this yet, but wouldn't it be great if when he “retires” from West Park, he start detailing, preparing and restoring some old GM vehicles to begin a West Park collection while Bob is working on our history album? These guys will never be allowed to leave!

Our Fixed Operations Manager - Bob

Meet our Fixed Operations Manager, Bob. Bob's first day of work at West Park was on August 31, 1968 at precisely 6:05 a.m., around the time when West Park first opened its doors! Through his many years at West Park he has witnessed the evolution of our dealership in all areas. Bob has seen numerous building renovations and expansions, helped West Park become the 1st rural GM dealer to computerize accounting and parts inventory in 1977 and has gone through the challenges of many new parts inventory control and communications systems, from the Cardex to “live inventory control” systems, with numerous variations in between. Communication is another area that has changed immensely, from when Bob first phoned in the parts orders, to the use of telex, then fax, then satellite, and now the use of email. Speaking of communication, quite likely it was Bob who sold you your first cellular phone (if you were from the Altona area) when cellulars were gaining popularity, which contributed to the development of our MTS Connect store today. When asked to recall a few of his most memorable moments at West Park, Bob laughed, “There are so many memorable moments after this many years, it’s hard to pick just a few.” Bob traveled to places such as Winnipeg, London ON, Dayton OH, and Atlanta GA to attend several schools, forums and meetings for parts inventory. He also had the opportunity to tour the factory in Oshawa and then drive trucks home, piggy-backed up to 3 per load. Some perks of Bob's job have also included GM trips to the Caribbean and Southern California, a Rogers/Cantel trip to Jamaica and an MTS Grey Cup game in Vancouver. Other highlights Bob recalls are the West Park staff and family Christmas weekends away, playing on a West Park sponsored baseball team, water-skiing with staff and families at Cavalier, ND and kart racing with staff members at Speed World. He also helped build and drive the West Park sponsored Hobby Stock race car, #23, at the Winnipeg Speedway in 1974. We must add that he finished 4th in points that season, receiving the “Best Appearance” trophy for the year and driver “Rookie of the Year” award in the Hobby Stock class! Interestingly, this talented race car driver also participated in the West Park Motors Choir and even did a few gigs publicly! “The highlights over the years all have one common component, and that is meeting and working with people. I am fortunate to have developed many friendships and acquaintances over the years with fellow staff members, customers, factory representatives, and suppliers. That’s what makes it work for me!”




With Bob's roots so deeply planted here, we'll suggest he write a West Park history book in his retirement and rummage through West Park's dusty box of memories, the thousands of old photos that are sitting in our attic!

Meet Ray - West Park's Dealer/Owner

Ray began working at West Park in June of 1973, one week after getting married to the love of his life, so he's just starting his 38th year here. Ray was a sales consultant for roughly 5 years, then the sales manager for 7 years prior to becoming the dealer 25 years ago. Although 37 years makes him one of the “senior” people on staff, Bob Stoesz, Cornie Peters and Bernie Klassen have all been here since West Park opened the doors in the fall of 1968. It was hard for Ray to pick one memorable moment out of a life time of experiences at West Park, but his memorable moments would certainly include events that staff have been able to share together, from weddings and anniversaries to the births of children and grandchildren. There was even a West Park band/choir that “performed” at some of these events when they were all a little younger and crazier! One thing Ray enjoys about his work is the people. He said, "West Park has the pleasure of dealing with a large number of people who keep our work enjoyable and interesting. Because no two people are the same, each encounter is new and exciting." The first GM vehicle Ray owned was a mid 60’s Pontiac Parisienne. He remembers shopping for that car with his dad and negotiating an $800 purchase price. "It was a big boat – but it was MY big boat," Ray recalls with a smile. When asked what his favourite GM vehicle is, Ray replied, "Over the years GM has built a lot of great cars and trucks, too many for me to select just one favourite, including the 1955 Chevy Bel Air convertible, Camaro, Corvette (pick a year), early 50’s Chevy pickups with the corner windows and I could name many more. One thing these vehicles all have in common is great looks and great styling."

West Park Sports Car Rally

We had the privilege of taking a group of our sports car customers on a rally to north eastern Minnesota from June 12-14.  On Saturday at 7:30 a.m. Ken and Yvonne were the first to show up at West Park.  Yvonne said she arrived the first because she was the most excited to go.  Four cars left from Altona, an orange Camaro, silver Camaro,  yellow Corvette convertible and a silver Corvette convertible.  The other 2, a yellow Corvette convertible and a yellow SSR, met up with us in Warroad, Minnesota.  Erv's car saw rain for the first time which we think almost did him in, but Lorraine was still allowed to ride inside the car rather than sit on the roof with an umbrella!  People were introduced to each other at the gas station in Warroad, grabbed their coffee and then we began our cruise as a group of 6 cars.

Little Sienna was a passenger in the silver Camaro for this trip.  Her parents hoped she would be seen and not heard, so as not to cause any disruptions to this getaway.  She ended up being some of the entertainment on our trip, was a sports car fanatic and met all the criteria of an excellent baby! 

Our lunch stop on Saturday was at Rosalie's Restaurant in Baudette, MN.  This was the only restaurant we hadn't visited before but it was recommended by the local chamber and we were not disappointed.  The food was delicious and the portions generous.  This was the start to a weekend filled with good food, great roads and entertainment.  This was also the first place where we treated ourselves to a warm bowl of Chicken Wild Rice soup, perfect for our not-so-perfect weather.

We drove a little farther and then took our next coffee break at Lake Kabetogama.  Instead of a "tail-gate parties" we had "trunk parties" where juice, pop, water and snacks were served.

We toured an iron ore mine in Sudan, MN.  Our tour guide was great and the mine is pretty amazing.  The ride down the mine shaft was quite exhilarating.  We packed about 17 people into a 6-foot square metal box and then plunged down 2400 feet, rattling and shaking in the dark to the excavation site.  Although the elevator travels at 10 mph, it felt a lot faster!

Our first night was spent at the Ely Lodge in Ely, Minnesota.  This is where we had our dinner and breakfast on Sunday.  And guess what they had on their menu?  That's right, Chicken and Wild Rice soup!

One of our memories of Ely Lodge will unfortunately be the game of Chess that Natasha volunteered to play against Len in the foyer before leaving that morning.  All bystanders were nearly choking, trying to hold in their laughter and refrain from giving advice as Natasha's red pieces were nabbed off the board one after another. It was painful!

This is the perfect road to take if you are ever looking for a twisting, smooth, scenic drive.  It is Hwy 1 from Ely to Lake Superior.  Then we took Hwy 61 which follows the north shore of Lake Superior.

Our lunch stop on Sunday was at Betty's Pies on Hwy 61, just north of Two Harbors, a place you cannot drive past without stopping.  They have a large menu, a fun retro atmosphere and a million pies to choose from.  You can even have your pie blended into a pie milkshake as Lorne and Jeremy did.

A little farther northeast up the road is Split Rock Light House.  Our group took the tour which normally would give you a great view of Lake Superior but unfortunately our view from the top of the light house was thick fog.  After touring the lighthouse, some people also went for a hike at Gooseberry Falls.

Sunday evening we arrived at Grand Superior Lodge.  This is where we had dinner and spent the night.  We rented a log home to hang out as a group before retiring to our own rooms.  Oh, and we shouldn't forget to mention that this restaurant also served Chicken and Wild Rice soup!  This became a bit of a group joke on our trip.  EVERYBODY in Minnesota seems to have "Soup du  Jour... Chicken and Wild Rice"!

This was the gorgeous view of Lake Superior from our log home window at the Grand Superior Lodge.

On Monday morning we ate breakfast on the deck of Grand Superior Lodge, over-looking the lake.  It was a cool and fresh morning that started looking promising with the sun shining on the lake but once again the fog rolled in.

This is a scenic rest area near the tunnels on Hwy 61, just north of Two Harbors. 

Our next stop was Duluth, Minnesota.  We spent time doing our own activities around Canal Park and then met for lunch at Grandma's. 

Jer and Sienna were brave souls as they posed for a picture with the seagulls nearly landing on their heads.  The birds had a bit of popcorn as their bribe.

Walter and Eunice bracing themselves in the wind as they watch the bridge lift for the boats.

Lorraine asked if they had a Chicken and Wild Rice soup.  Not only did they have Chicken and Wild Rice Soup, it turned out their soup was FAMOUS Chicken and Wild Rice soup. She actually ordered it and we burst out laughing!

Other than wishing for different weather, our trip was excellent.  We were with a great group of people and enjoyed riding with so many awesome Chevy sports cars!  This is something we would like to try again in the future and we plan to do more 1-day rallies, as we have in the past.  We would love to have you join us next time!  All you need is a sports car you have purchased from West Park Motors in Altona!  It's that easy!