Earl Guynes from North Texas had the most cherished chapters in his life that lived only in his mind for 41 years.
“I was working in automotive. I was in parts. And one of my employees had the car and I liked it,” said Guynes.
At 22, Earl got the chance to purchase his dream car, a 1967 Chevrolet Camaro.
“It was blue with white stripes down across the hood and down the back, two doors of course. ’67 were the ones with a wing window on the side,” he said. “The car was loud and people would kind of always be looking at you and you’d always see somebody side eyeing like see that car come down the street. It was just a cool thing, a fun thing to do, you know?”
But as life happens, changes are inevitable such as one's priorities. In 1982, Earl married his sweetheart, Mona and became a father to her daughter, Jennifer. Two years later, they welcomed their son, Jared. With two young children at home, Earl felt it was time to part with his favorite but most expensive toy, his dream Camaro.
“I used to tease Jared quite a bit. ‘I used to have a car like that one over there.’ And I said, ‘Yeah, I let it go for diaper money. You needed diapers and so that’s what happened to that car,’” he said.
“I thought he was full of it because that’s exactly what a guy in a tank top and a minivan would tell you. Like, ‘This is not normal. I’m in this minivan because of the circumstances. I used to have a Camaro.’ I’m like, ‘Mmhmm. I used to have a Camaro.’ It’s like the guy at the bar talking about the high school championship or something,” said Jared Guynes.
Over the years, however, Earl’s Camaro was just as vivid in Jared’s mind as in his dad’s.
“It’s a 1967 Marina blue Camaro SS with a 350 small-block V8, an automatic 3-speed transmission. Crager chrome 15-inch mag wheels with white letters on the tire, small 1969 style cowl hood on the front, a small little whale tail on the back and a black interior,” said Jared.
Over the years, Jared thought about how wonderful it would be to get his dad’s car back. Then, in 2021, he had a great year in business.
“Instead of paying down debt or investing or doing something responsible, I did what any Guynes man would do. I started looking for a cool car, but this one specifically. I wanted to begin the quest to get my dad’s car back or get as close as I possibly could,” he said.
After a lot of research, Jared learned his dad sold the car for cash. As there was no proof of sale, he began looking for a car similar to his dad’s. He spent a year looking coast to coast. And in 2022, he finally got a lead.
Just 70 miles from home, there was a Marina blue Camaro that needed a lot of TLC. But for two years, Jared worked to restore it while keeping the secret. But, this year, on his dad’s 65th birthday, Jared threw a party and got the help of a magician to reveal a surprise 41 years in the making.
The moment brought Earl to tears.
Though the '67 Camaro isn’t exactly like the car Earl gave up; it’s better—a safer, slightly quieter, and more polished version.
“It draws attention everywhere you go,” said Earl.
Earl spent most of his career in the automotive industry, so he’s eager to get his hands dirty by taking the restoration one step further.
This time, Jared will be along for the ride making the massive gesture even more special.
“Wanting dad to really understand how much I love him and how important he is to me and how good of a job he did being a dad, I wanted to find the biggest, most symbolic most outrageous, way to help him understand how much. And I’m like, what is the greatest thing possible? And it was the Camaro. It was always the Camaro,” he said.
Source: NBCDFW