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Ron Zurkammer is taking this process literally, as he will end
2015 as the Parts Manager at Graue Chevrolet and begin 2016 as a
stay at home husband, father, grandfather, and tinkerer. That’s
right, after 50 years the reliable face of Graue’s Parts Department
is retiring.
Ron pictured center
At 69 years of age, Zurkammer has spent 72 percent of his lifetime
thus far working with the dealership. He started with Graue on
January 2, 1966 at the age of 19. It was the second job he had held
in his young lifetime, and it worked out so well, he stayed, and
stayed, and stayed. Now after 50 years, he’s ready to hang it up.
Talking about what next week will bring, Zurkammer said there is a
list of “honey-do” projects waiting for him, he has kids and
grandkids close-by that he hopes to spend more time with, and he
plans on attending more of the grandkids sporting events. He also
has a collection of vintage cars (all Chevy’s of course) that he
plans to tinker with from time to time.
Zurkammer began his career with the Partlow-Graue dealership in 1966
working in the lube rack. After being there only ten months, he was
called into service by Uncle Sam and served our country during the
Vietnam War era. When his stint in the service was over 23 months
later, he returned to his job at the dealership.
In 1968, he was moved into the Parts Department. Zurkammer said at
that time the dealership was still in the downtown area across from
Latham Park where today the recycling bins are located. That
building was victim to fire in 1969, and the dealership was moved to
its current location on the north end of Kickapoo Street in Lincoln.
In 1980, Zurkammer became the Parts Manager for the dealership and
has held that position to today.
 Zurkammer
has worked for two generations of Graue’s, first Bob, who began
working for Partlow Chevrolet and later bought into the business
making it Partlow-Graue. Next the dealership was Graue-Sawicki.
Over time, the business would evolve into Graue Chevrolet, with Bob
at the helm and Ron at the Parts counter.
The torch was then passed to Chris Graue, who is the owner-manager
of the dealership today. Zurkammer remembered that when he began
working for Graue, Chris was only a toddler, so he has watched his
boss grow up.
For the younger generation, it may be hard to consider a life
without computers, but in the 1960’s, 70’s, and early 1980’s, the
Parts Department was maintained with paper. Chris Graue remembered
the racks and racks of parts books that were a daily part of doing
business at Graue Chevrolet.
Zurkammer remembered that for a short time, the parts department
went to a microfiche, but it didn’t work out well, so they went back
to books. In 1980, the Parts Department moved to computers.
Zurkammer recalled that was quite a transition with a lot to learn.
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Zurkammer has been one of those employees that every employer wishes
for, and not many get. Graue noted Zurkammer's dedication to the
dealership saying he has always been one of those who didn’t take
time off, and was even known to be in his office on Sunday’s getting
work done while it was quiet. “I can remember only one time he took
a sick day, and we thought the world had come to an end then,” Graue
said. Zurkammer also remembered that day and said it
was while he was going through cancer treatments over 20 years ago.
He said to his recollection he did take one day off during that
illness, and he may have taken a snow day once. Zurkammer also noted
that while he was battling Cancer, he had the support of his
employer. Though he made it to work every day, there were days when
he didn’t feel well, and he would leave early, or only spend a part
of a day, with no questions from his employer.
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The Graue staff in 1972
Graue expressed that it is Zurkammer’s dedication to his job that
has made the Parts Department at Graue’s a well-run machine and an
asset to the company. “As a result of his dedication, we have about
the cleanest, most up-to-date inventory of anyone around,” Graue
said. “I’d put Ron up against any Parts Manager, any computer
system, in knowing how the system operates and knowing how to get
numbers out of it, and keep things arranged correctly.”
Graue said that while employees like Zurkammer are not truly
‘replaceable” the dealership has hired a new Parts Manager that is
doing well. Zurkammer had told his employer early in 2015 that he
would be leaving at the end of the year. Graue said that gave him
ample time to work on finding someone who could come in, work side
by side with Ron, and make the transition as smooth as possible.
Graue commented, “We’ll never be able to replace someone like Ron,
it’s just impossible, but we have a replacement that is very, very
qualified. In passing the torch, he (Ron) has spent a lot of time
with our new guy, (Tyler Bayless) getting him up to speed.”
In summing up his feelings, Graue said, “Ron has been a valuable
asset to the dealership for a long, long time, as long as I can
remember. We’re going to certainly miss him. You can have the best
products and the best building, the greatest merchandise, but if you
don’t have good people, you don’t have a good business. Our Parts
Department has been one of those things that we just let Ron run,
and he has done a good job."
Ron added his own sentiment as well, “I feel quite fortunate to be
able to work for the same company that many years, and the same
family. His dad was real good to me, and Chris has been good to me.”
While Zurkammer is ‘going out quietly” at the end of the year, the
dealership is planning an event at a later date to celebrate
Zurkammer and his retirement from the dealership.
[Nila Smith]
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