Lost my buddy Fred Grande today
- Thread starter tpraceman
- Start date
I also have had too many sad days like this, but they pass and the good memories remain. All who knew this fine man are in our thoughts and prayers.
Thank you all. It is another day and I have been thinking of all the truely remarkable things we did together and he did for me & my family.
Fred built everything he had. I mean he would restore a car and would do all the body, motor, drive train, frame brakes and every nut and bolt to perfection himself. He would machine, weld grind blast and restore.
Fred had a experimental heart valve replacement in 2005 that was revolutionary. Only a few people in France had this done and only a few lived more than 3 days. Fred was on Good Morning America a week after. They went to the hospital and could not find him. He was at the dealership in his hot rod garage working on one of his hot rods from a chair. When the reporters for Charlie Gibson came he took them for a ride in his seriously modded and real fast Lightning pick up. After they left I gave him a heart to heart talk and helped him home. I said Fred what in the world are you doing?
He said "Tom never let them think your asleep at the switch" Fred always had words of wisdom to live by.
Here is a link to the NY Times article with a photo of Fred.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/15/health/15valves.html
Tomy as a retired Ford dealer you could appreciate this, he bought an old Ford Edsel Dealership and built a new one down the street from it (Edsel dealerships were special shaped buildings) The new one he built himself and poured the concrete and layed the block and did all the work at night by himself with what ever little money he had left over at the end of the day.
This Forum is very special and is becoming like no other. Maybe its just the type of people who are attracted to the very special GT by very special people.
Fred built everything he had. I mean he would restore a car and would do all the body, motor, drive train, frame brakes and every nut and bolt to perfection himself. He would machine, weld grind blast and restore.
Fred had a experimental heart valve replacement in 2005 that was revolutionary. Only a few people in France had this done and only a few lived more than 3 days. Fred was on Good Morning America a week after. They went to the hospital and could not find him. He was at the dealership in his hot rod garage working on one of his hot rods from a chair. When the reporters for Charlie Gibson came he took them for a ride in his seriously modded and real fast Lightning pick up. After they left I gave him a heart to heart talk and helped him home. I said Fred what in the world are you doing?
He said "Tom never let them think your asleep at the switch" Fred always had words of wisdom to live by.
Here is a link to the NY Times article with a photo of Fred.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/15/health/15valves.html
Tomy as a retired Ford dealer you could appreciate this, he bought an old Ford Edsel Dealership and built a new one down the street from it (Edsel dealerships were special shaped buildings) The new one he built himself and poured the concrete and layed the block and did all the work at night by himself with what ever little money he had left over at the end of the day.
This Forum is very special and is becoming like no other. Maybe its just the type of people who are attracted to the very special GT by very special people.
THamonGT
GT
What great stories Tom you will forever remember of your friend. Your friend and his family are in my prayers. Tomy