Before you learn about us you have to learn where we came from. Kenny was a mechanic in the building which is now our detail shop and worked next door to a body shop named Emmel’s (which is currently our paint shop). In 1982, Emmel retired from the auto body business and decided to sell his building. Kenny went out on limb and decided to purchase the business. It is hard to believe that Union Collision started in what is currently our smallest building. This two-thousand square foot building was where we once did the body work, primed the vehicles, painted them, and prepared them for delivery.
Kenny took that body shop and made it his own, treating customers as they are still treated today - with a sense of respect and compassion. As his success grew, so did the need for more space. In 1986, Kenny was able to make an offer on his old mechanic shop and turn that building into space for the expanding body shop. Soon after that purchase there were too many cars on the premises and not enough men or room to work with. Coincidentally, a machine shop was for sale a couple of buildings down and was a perfect fit for a body shop. We acquired it in 1997 and it is now the home of our current office.
For about a decade we were content with the three buildings and their lots. However, as more and more cars came to our shop again we ran out of room to store the parts, the cars, and our machines. In 2008, the trucking company located next to the original shop decided it was time to consolidate and sell the building. Being Kenny’s neighbor and friend for over thirty years, they first offered it to him and without hesitation the purchase was made.
Inside these four buildings that make up Union Collision you will find three generations working together. There is a grandfather (Frank), a mother (Barbara), a father (Kenny) and two sons (Michael and Nick) working closely together and somehow or another doing so without any quarrels. That family then extends to the rest of the employees at the shop. They may not have the same last name or the stunning good looks but they are treated for better or for worse like they are just another part of our family. All employees are eligible for full medical coverage, 401(k) plan with matching contributions, tuition reimbursement, as well as paid holidays and vacations.
In the end, we are trying to make the unfortunate occurrence of a car accident as painless and hassle free as we possibly can. We try our best and often go above and beyond the scope of the repair process to make everyone that walks through our front door part of our family.