Staff Writer For quite some time I have, about three times per month, seen an “older” beautiful brown and black pick-up truck while I have been taking my routine tour of Forney and drinking my “coffee-soda!” I wanted to know more about it and its owner and tried to find out to whom it belonged…..NO LUCK! A time or four I even saw it parked and tried to determine in whose driveway or in which store the owner was hiding…..BUT NO LUCK!
I had just about totally given up my hunt when one morning as I was coming out of the Forney Post Office, I glanced up from perusing my Forney Messenger, and “lo and behold” I saw, getting out of the brown and black pick-up, a man I had seen a few times but had never met and had never seen in “THE TRUCK!” As he approached and saw me “staring,” he said, “Good morning; how are you doing?”
My answer was my standard, “I am better than I deserve but not as good as I wish!” And then I ventured the question, “Do you own that truck?”
His answer was, “Yes, I do. I have had it for a while.”
I replied, “I am Don Themer, and I have been looking for you and would like to get some information about your truck.”
Before I could begin the interview I had planned, this gentleman said, “Let’s move over here more in the shade and out of the way, and then we can talk.”
I agreed, and a decent conversation ensued. I found out that JULE DECKARD lived on an historic Forney Street, was as concerned as I am about the rising number of “incidents” that are taking place in public places that once were safe, was a hard worker and did not especially like folks coming up to him when he was alone and asking him for money, liked living in Forney, knew my “boss” (Darrell), had children and grandchildren, and had been driving THE TRUCK for a few years but also had another vehicle. And, I found out that we both mowed our own lawns, picked up our mail at the main post office, believed folks should work and provide for themselves if they are healthy—and that he, like I, tried to stay active, onthe- go, and healthy.
When we noticed that we were probably “holding up the foot traffic on the sidewalk,” we made plans to have me come to his house in a couple of days and see the truck and ask him some questions for a possible article in the paper.
So, a few days later, I was driving my morning routine, called Mr. Deckard, and received an invitation to come to see and photograph the “vintage vehicle” and also to ask some questions about it—and maybe some about its owner!
I found out that Mr. Jule Deckard had moved to Forney in 1988, which makes him an “Old Forney” (not old) citizen of about 35 years! He came to us from Tatum, Texas, where years earlier he had graduated from Mayflower High School in the Community of Mayflower in the Tatum area.
The truck has been his for approximately four (4) years and is a 1964 Chevrolet C-10 with 235/75R15 tires all the way around and nice “special” wheels. According to the speedometer, its top speed should be around 100 miles per hour, but Jule would not testify to ever driving it that fast to check it out. He did note that the miles driven per gallon of gasoline averaged around 15, which he and I decided was about average for most vehicles of that era.
Since purchasing the C-10, he has added air-conditioning and power steering, which made it more comfortable for the passengers and more easily “steered and turned” for the driver! He remembers that turning it was hard before the addition of power. The listed selling price is “not for sale,” but Mr. Deckard did admit that if someone offered him $25,000.00 he would most likely sell. He plans to keep it and drive it often to keep it running smoothly and the lubrication flowing. (He had taken his lawn mower that day to [I think] Pleasant Grove to have the blades sharpened and said that “trucks” come in handy for hauling things.)
Long-term plans for the ’64 are that Kalil (his Grandson of 16 years), who lives in Longview and is in the Pine Tree School zone now, will inherit it and be its proud owner when the right time comes! However, he does admit that no one besides him (Jule) drives it at this time. Part of the reason may be because the truck has a 3-speed standard transmission with a manual clutch, and the shifter is a “stick shift” on the floor! I often drive my Dad’s ’88 Ranger with a “standard 5-speed clutch shift transmission,” and Jule and I discussed how most folks today do not know how to shift the gears and take off smoothly, using a standard transmission.
When I asked how old he is, he said that he is not admitting to any certain age but that he is pretty sure he is a little older than I (Themer) am.
As we sat on the porch a little later and talked, I found out that Jule had been a TRUCK DRIVER for many, many years and had driven “singles, doubles, and triples” freight trucks—which means single, double, and triple trailers behind the “tractor/truck.” He says that he really preferred to drive the big triple trailer rigs and that he was at times part of truck convoys. His routes were in California, the Dakotas, Indiana, and other states and often involved going up and down some pretty tall mountains. He worked years for Consolidated Freightways. His last job was for NTMWD (North Texas Municipal Water District), driving big 18-wheelers full of freight.
To close, besides mentioning a Grandson earlier, I want to let you know that three of his Children attended Forney Schools, and maybe some of you remember one or more of them— Shawndra Bradley was born in 1976 and attended Forney Elementary/Middle Schools during the 1980s we think. And her “nickname” was PEEWEE! Two others were DELTON and SHANIKA DECKARD, and I remember them from my later years of teaching. Both were conscientious students and behaved admirably!
**When Jule called Delton to “check a story detail for Don Themer,” I heard the voice say, “Is that Mr. Themer with you?” I answered across the table that I was sitting by his father. Delton asked me if I had ever become a Walmart Greeter as I had told the class I would when I retired. I said, “Not Yet!” I was really surprised he remembered that important detail from English classwork!** I thank Mr. Deckard for sharing information about his life and his pickup truck, and most folks I know believe that there is “Just SOMETHING about a VINTAGE VEHICLE” that makes it special!
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