Man restores vintage car to honor son killed by drunken driver

By Drew Andersen Waterloo Courier Staff Writer

WATERLOO -- Soon after purchasing his 1969 Dodge Charger SE, Jeff Swartzendruber made a shocking discovery.

After grinding through a layer of worn black paint, he uncovered the vintage muscle car's true shade -- the rare burnished bronze metallic. It was the first of many discoveries that Swartzendruber made during his two-year restoration of the B-Body Dodge made famous by "The Dukes of Hazard" General Lee and the chase scene from Steve McQueen's "Bullitt."

As surprising as the paint discovery was, it paled in comparison to the astounding amount of support Swartzendruber received from the community during the restoration process.

"Every day was a discovery for me," he said.

Just over two years ago, Swartzendruber pulled the car into his garage for the first time and looked at his selection of tools. All he had was a small, plastic toolbox that had belonged to his son, John. Swartzendruber admitted that prior to restoring the Charger, he had never even changed the oil in a car. The project would require outside help, and that help came in droves to honor John, for whom the car was being restored.

John was killed by a drunken driver in August 2001 in Cedar Falls. Devoutly religious, John did not drink, and he was sober and driving an intoxicated friend home from the bars when another driver crossed the centerline and crashed into John's sport utility vehicle.

There was no particular reason why Swartzendruber chose to restore the car as a way of honoring his son. He said that the idea just came to him like a calling, and he knew that he could pull it off with God's help.

"The fun thing about the project is, Jeff had never picked up a wrench before," said his wife, Pat. "He just felt very strong that he wanted to restore a car and donate the money to the community center."

Pat had her doubts about the project at first. When Swartzendruber initially told her about his plan, she asked, "Are you sure that you are hearing the right voices?" But once he talked her into it, she gave him complete control.

"The biggest part is that she trusted me with the checkbook," said Swartzendruber, who purchased many of the parts for the car on eBay.

The Swartzendrubers are planning to sell the car to benefit a community center in Brno, Czech Republic. The center already is home to the John Swartzendruber Ministry Building and is a refuge for Czech teens who want to have fun in an alcohol-free environment.

"It's just the sort of thing that John would have loved," Swartzendruber said.

John's story has touched many people in the community, and Swartzendruber relied on his friends and others who wanted to honor John to help him restore the Charger. Without their support, Swartzendruber might not have been able to bring the Charger from its dilapidated state to its current show-car quality.

The husband of one of the Swartzendruber's employees at Image Pointe in Waterloo was of particular help in rebuilding the Charger. The first night that Rashid Sadikovic showed up and saw the car, he turned to Swartzendruber, and in a thick Bosnian accent asked, "Do you know what you are doing?"

"Nope," Swartzendruber responded. "But neither do you, so you can definitely help."

Even Pat's mother, Thelma Morrow, lent a hand when she moved in with the family after being diagnosed with cancer. She took care of all the chores around the house that Swartzendruber normally did, giving him more free time to spend in the garage working on the car. She died last October, and her contributions were greatly appreciated by the family.

One area car expert helped Swartzendruber prepare the car for its first show in Swartzendruber's home town of Wayland. Jeff Bobst of Waverly critiqued the car before the show, and with his help, the Charger took first place in the MOPAR category.

A major factor in the car's success at the show was a photo album that Pat put together of the car's restoration process. While most restoration veterans know that creating an album is always a good idea, Pat did not realize that it would actually raise the car's value. She simply put it together to commemorate the process.

The Swartzendrubers do not have a definite timetable on selling the Charger, but Swartzendruber said that they will likely sell it on eBay or at an auction. They hope to raise between $35,000 to $40,000 for the community center in the Czech Republic.

Contact Drew Andersen at (319) 291-1418 or drew.andersen@wcfcourier.com.