Who was Chuck Overbey? Chuck Overbey was born in Lamar, Arkansas in 1934, and at the age of 14, he and his family moved 1600 miles west to Ventura, California. After graduating high school, Chuck bravely served his country in the United States Army. Upon returning home, he got a job as an engineer at Douglas Aircraft where he worked in the research and development laboratory, helping to develop the technology that made putting the first man on the moon possible.
Despite having led a successful career in engineering, Chuck eventually felt a calling towards a different profession—automotive repair. He pursued this new endeavor with incredible gusto. He signed up for night classes in Cypress College’s Transmission Division and started his own repair shop in 1978.
Committed to his newfound passion, Chuck joined ASCCA and quickly rose through its ranks. He served as President of Chapter 48, Director of the National Transmission Division, and ASCCA President in 1990.
His wife, Betty Overbey, recounted this memorable moment in 1990 when Chuck was elected president:
Chuck was presented with this homemade hammer or gavel that someone had made. While leaving the event, we put the gavel in our trunk, and headed home, but when we got there, the gavel was nowhere to be seen!
Shortly after, we began receiving photos of the darn thing traveling up and down the state. People would send photos of the gavel traveling with them on vacation, or posing on their auto shop signs. It was so bizarre.
Finally, on the night of ASCCA’s 50th Anniversary Banquet, we returned to our room and were shocked to see the gavel mysteriously sitting on our hotel bed. To this day, I don’t know who did it or why, but it’s a memory that always makes me laugh.
Chuck’s story is an inspiration to men and women everywhere who are considering pursuing a new career in automotive repair.