Valley dad gets big Father’s Day surprise

It would have been hard to beat this Father’s Day gift.

Dating back to over 50 years ago, recent college graduate Cecil R. Sims purchased a 1962 Chevy half-ton pickup truck from Courtesy Chevrolet for $1,700.00.

The truck then stayed in in his family over the decades and racked up over 300,000 miles of fond memories.

But over the last 15 years, the truck has begun to peter into struggle.

So Sims’ son-in-law, Jim Anderson, and his wife thought it was time for a restoration. Since last December, Anderson rallied up family members and searched far and wide for the specific parts to fix the vehicle. They wanted to get the car ready for Father’s Day.

After spending five months deconstructing and rebuilding the truck, Anderson approached Courtesy Chevrolet about redelivering the truck to the show room floor on Saturday for a big unveiling.

“We had all of his family members and all of the people involved in rebuilding the truck which was quite considerable,” said Courtesy Chevrolet Sales and Marketing Manager Jason Church.

“It was a fantastic affair — everyone was there; definitely the best Father’s Day present I could imagine.”
Church said Sims didn’t catch on that the truck was his at first.

“He (Sims) was walking past the car and his daughter said, ‘That’s a nice looking truck,’ and he said, ‘You know, I used to have one exactly like that,'” Church said.

According to Church, Sims eventually proclaimed, “I think this is my truck!”

The pickup was painted back to its original color, beige with a white top.