A Corvette for an Impala

If you had the choice between a Chevrolet Corvette or a Chevrolet Impala, which would you choose?

For most of us, the choice would be easy, ‘give me the Corvette.’

But in 1964, for a soon to be dad, that was not the best choice. Instead, he traded his two-seater Corvette for the larger Impala to accommodate a growing family.

Family first.

That is a part of the story of Fred Wessel and his wife Jean. They were in the process of relocating from South Florida to Hunstville, Alabama, to open one of the few Burger King franchises, and they needed a bigger car.

So out with the Corvette and in with the Impala.

Spring forward to 2020, and the Wessel family still has the 1964 Impala. For the last few years, it has been kept in a safe shop up on blocks for protection. It had not been driven, nor was it in running order. In this condition, it was a visual reminder of the risk Fred Wessel moving to Huntsville, nothing more.

Up on blocks

In a garage, up on blocks and covered is not the best way to enjoy a family keepsake.

If you haven’t put the pieces together yet, let us help you. Fred Wessel is the father of James Wessel, the founder, and president of Brindlee Mountain Fire Apparatus. And it was at the Brindlee Mountain campus that the 1964 Impala was resting.

Without James’ knowledge, some of the Brindlee Mountain team decided to invest some elbow grease and add some other items to the Impala to get it running again.

It runs

And they did.

In early November 2020, the Brindlee Mountain met as a whole team for the first time since the COVID outbreak. The meeting date happened to coincide with James’ birthday.

As the meeting was coming to an end, appearing from around the corner of a building was the beautiful 1964 Impala ready for a test drive.

Happy birthday, James.

From the look on James’ face, he was surprised, but it didn’t take him long to load his family and take off down the road.

Since that day, the old Impala has covered more miles than it had in years. Now the memories are not relived glancing at a covered vehicle but rolling down the road, turning gas into miles and making new memories with the next generation of Wessels.