The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
All For The Love of Cars & Community
By Bonnie Carnes, Special For The Quill
My Dad, Donald “Don” Carnes Sr., was born in 1928 just outside of Media, IL. He was born 10th out of 14 kids in his family. Growing up as a young boy in a big family during the U.S. Great Depression taught him: the value of hard work, holding on to whatever came your way, taking care of your possessions, buying local and dedication to your community.
In his younger years, Don loved tinkering on cars, tractors, really anything with an engine. He was committed to helping his parents and the community. As he started out on his own, he was a carpenter and helped on local farms. He joined the U.S. Army and served briefly in the Korean War during the 1950’s. He married in 1956 and started a family (6 kids in all.) He began buying farm equipment and started cash-rent farming full time for multiple families in the area. He remained a farmer throughout the rest of his life. In 1979, he started his own small business. He owned & operated Don’s Repair. A small engine repair shop and lawnmower sales dealership. He lived his entire 82-year life in Henderson County.
Don was a Ford/Mercury/Lincoln man! As an adult he bought all of his vehicles from the same Ford Dealership... Davison Motors in Stronghurst, Illinois. The salesman was the owner, Russell Davison.
It was important to Don to buy local and support local businesses. He’d often paid more for buying in his small town, but the value of supporting his community was more important to him.
I cannot name all of the vehicles he bought from Davison’s over the years, but his 1976 pale yellow Grand Marquis and 1978 dark green Grand Marquis were his favorite. The ’76 was the daily driver/family car. The ’78 was his ‘trophy”, his pride- n- joy! It was only used for family vacations, funerals, special family events and driving his bowling team to their bowling league. It was garage kept the entire time he owned it except for about the first 9 months (before he had a garage.) It was rarely driven in the winter months. He kept it well maintained through the same dealership where he bought it, with regular oil changes at every 3000 miles and insisted they always used the same Ford Motor Oil in it. He kept it cleaned and waxed prior to driving it for special events. As far as I know, if it ever needed any tires or repair, it always went back to Davison Motors to his trusted mechanic there.
All of us kids had great memories in the ’78 Mercury b/c when we rode in it, it meant it was time for summer vacation! The car was comfortable and BIG! We needed all the space it provided for our large family.
I remember on our first family vacation in it, my sister taught me how to tie my shoes in the back seat of that car! As an adult in the mid 1990’s, I got to drive Don in the ’78 Mercury to that same vacation spot. What a treat to finally be the one behind the wheel driving him around!
We had a few nicknames for the car… The Green Cruiser, The Tank, The Merc and The Green Machine.
As Don aged, the car mostly sat in the garage unused. He would start the car regularly, but it was just easier for him to get in and out of his Ford Pick-up. (Which was also purchased from Davison Motors!)
Dad passed way in 2009 and loved that ’78 Mercury until the day he died. To him, it was the one nice thing he had, that was all his! He shared and gave so much to his family & community that he often didn’t have a lot to show for that hard work and dedication. His 1978 Grand Marquis was his trophy car. Something he was proud of, something he liked to show off and something he loved talking about.
He always dreamt of owning a Lincoln, but once he got his Grand Marquis’, he was so pleased that he said if he ever bought a Lincoln, he would just be paying for the name. His Grand Marquis was just as nice and as comfortable as a Lincoln. In fact, he often joked that he’d be buried in it because it was more plush than a casket!
If you’ve read this far, you might be asking yourself, “I wonder where this car is today?” Would you believe it if we said it is now in Europe? We hated to sell it, but after our Mom passed away and we sold their home, none of us had a place to keep it stored and in good condition.
In 2017, I brought it to Tennessee to take it to car shows to try to sell and get it ready to list for sale online. Within a few months, it sold and the buyer arranged for it to be shipped overseas. The car only had 76,000 original miles on it.
The new owner is currently working on a short film for his family about the history of that very car. Hence the reason for a lot of the content in this article. Don would be so proud that his car is being enjoyed today by a brand new family.
There will be a car show in Stronghurst during the Fall Festival on Saturday, September 17th, 2022.
A photo of Don Carnes in 1978 at the age of 50, standing between his 1976 yellow Grand Marquis and the 1978 green Grand Marquis.
Don’s daughter, Bonnie Carnes, with the Grand Marquis at a car show in Franklin, Tennessee, along with a 1955 Ford Pick-up. (Which sold online and it shipped overseas to Denmark!)
“The Green Cruiser” in all of its glory!
The new owners of the car…a young European family, keeping this car on the road!
Davison Motors in Stronghurst, circa 1980’s.