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WASHINGTON - Inspecting a car’s transmission, exercising a little corrosion control under an off-road truck and removing all four wheels from a sport utility vehicle are some of the many auto maintenance activities fathers and sons performed at the Father’s Day Open House held at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling’s (JBAB) Auto Hobby Shop.
The open house marks the first event of its kind to be held at the JBAB Auto Hobby Shop, according to shop supervisor, Wain Mitcheltree.
“We are having this to let more people know about us and the services that are available to them,” he said.
Some people throughout the installation are not aware that an auto hobby shop exists on JBAB, according to Mitcheltree. He said he hopes that the open house and other events like this will change that and increase public awareness.
“We were looking for ways to get the word out and let people know where we are. We were approved for a little extra funding to get some food and refreshments,” he said.
Mitchelltree also explained the auto shop agreed to cover the costs of the extra fluids needed to provide free top-off servicing for customers during the open house.
“We worked out the cost of the extra fluids into our budget. We did that because a lot of people need it. Some of them can’t afford to go off base and so we did that to help them out,” he said. Air Force pilot Maj. Aaron Lapp, a native of Colorado Springs, Colo., came to the auto hobby shop with his son to have the oil and transmission fluid levels of his Honda Odyssey minivan topped-off.
“I am going to adjust the coolant level and then replace the power-steering fluid because it’s pretty dirty,” Mitcheltree said while working under the hood of Lapp’s minivan.
In addition to the free fluid top-offs, the auto shop open house provided customers with free car safety inspections, a tour of the facility and refreshments including hot dogs, hamburgers and hot and cold beverages.
JBAB employee Arthur Yemaiel, an avid outdoorsman and off-road explorer, applauded the auto hobby shop’s effort to increase public awareness of its location and the services it provides.
“I always come here. It is an excellent place to work on your car as opposed to working at the house where you get all dirty and upset the neighbors. I come here, make friends and the crew here is very helpful,” said Yemaiel.
Yemaiel said the JBAB auto hobby shop is valuable in helping people perform routine maintenance.
“They give you all the tools you need. The auto hobby shop is a good place to be,” he said.
Yemaiel came to the shop during the open house to touch up the under belly of his truck with black primer to protect it against the spread of rust and corrosion.
“They [the auto manufacturer] put very little in the joints,” explained Yemaiel. “So every year I put more and when you go into the wilderness the sand or whatever, the elements just chip it away. When I am finished, the bottom of the truck is going to be all black,” he said.
With his father, uncle and brother pushing his car forward, Dominick Gibson steered his silver BMW 325i into the lift garage at the auto hobby shop.
Gibson and his bother Pedro came to the auto hobby shop along with their father, retired Army Veteran Frank and their uncle Walker, a retired Marine veteran to examine the transmission.
“We are here to help Dominick get his car back on the road, so I can get my 1998 Chevy Silverado back,” Frank Gibson said. His truck has 200,000 miles on it, but it is still running, he said.
Frank, no stranger to auto maintenance, is currently working on restoring a 1964 Ford Falcon. When complete about a year a half from now, he plans to put it on display at the Maryland International Raceway.
Walker said he came along to the auto hobby shop to assist his brother and his nephews.
“We are here to inspect the [BMW] and to find out what is causing it to make strange noises,” he said.
Dominick, a Pentagon employee, adjusted the yellow steel bars under the car to ensure his car was seated properly before engaging the car lift.
He appreciated the assistance from his father and his other family members at the auto hobby shop during the Father’s Day Open House.
“It’s the best facility at JBAB and it just so happens to be near my home,” he said.
Air Force Senior Airman Adam Martin from the 744th Communications Squadron at Joint Base Andrews (JBA) and auto maintenance partner Troy St. Germain, a JBA employee, said the absence of an auto hobby shop at Andrews was behind their decision to come to JBAB to work on the wheel springs of their Volkswagen sports utility vehicle.
Martin and St. Germain were among some of customers who said they came to JBAB from JBA to work on their vehicles due to the closure of the auto hobby shop at JBA.
“JBAB is the only base in the area with a car shop. They closed downed the one at Andrews,” St. Germain said.
| Date Taken: | 06.20.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 11.04.2014 15:13 |
| Story ID: | 146949 |
| Location: | WASHINGTON, DC, US |
| Hometown: | COLORADO SPRINGS, CO, US |
| Web Views: | 50 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Joint Base auto hobby shop hosts Father’s Day Open House, by Robert W. Mitchell, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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