The Beloved Blue Convertible, 2005 – 2018: An obit of sorts
July 20, 2018
By Reba Hull Campbell
The Beloved Blue Convertible was towed away by the ETV Endowment car donation wrecker after an unexpected demise last week following a fried engine and radiator resulting in a breakdown on I95.
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After a consultation at a Walterboro mechanic’s shop, the decision was made not to repair because of the considerable expense that didn’t make sense for the 13-year-old vehicle with 185,000 miles, a cracked dashboard and tattered upholstery.
The Beloved Blue Convertible leaves behind her driver, Reba Campbell, who will miss her style, stability and bike rack that always made it easy to find the car in a parking lot.
The Beloved Blue Convertible was predeceased by her favorite travel companions, Beaufort and Dixie, the golden retrievers who loved the car as much as her driver did.
The Beloved Blue Convertible brought her driver much joy. She took the driver to many great biking outings like the Swamp Rabbit Trail in Greenville, the beach at Amelia Island, the Colonial Parkway in Williamsburg VA, and the riverwalk in Columbus GA, plus the countless trips to Litchfield and Hilton Head with bikes attached to her trunk.
The Beloved Blue Convertible had several memorable adventures including a ride in the Cayce Christmas parade with Miss Greenville Scottish Games and Dixie, plus a movie cameo with the Chick-Fil-A cow in the back seat. She was always up for something fun.
While some may have called the Beloved Blue Convertible messy, her large trunk space meant the driver could keep all sorts of emergency provisions on hand at all times – a beach chair, spare tennis shoes and flip flops, random gym equipment like boxing gloves, weights and a jump rope; bike maintenance products; a spare bike helmet; dozens of old CDs; three yoga mats; a dozen books; Armor All; extra sunglasses, reading glasses and night driving glasses; a music stand; dog biscuits; three beach towels; two hand towels; extra uke picks and several dozen grocery bags. All of these emergency provisions have been transferred safely to the driver’s new vehicle.
The driver asks that in lieu of memorials, friends and family deliver a random act of kindness to someone as a way to repay all the people who extended their kindness and generosity to her after the Beloved Blue Convertible’s breakdown and subsequent demise.
The driver wishes to gratefully thank the following people who served as her Beloved Blue Convertible’s village during its happy life and recent rapid demise: the driver’s many friends and family members who endured 13 years of really hot or really cold rides because of the driver’s need to have the top down at all times unless it was raining or below 60 degrees; Jack (Porkchop) Miles who thought the driver was really cool in the neighborhood driving what he thought was a Lamborghini; Bill and Patrick at Complete Car Care who the driver always trusted implicitly with automotive decisions; Ren Bradley for his perpetually sound advice about all things automotive;
Nephew John Peters who, as a kid, loved to jump into the back seat without opening the door when the top was down and who drove to Walterboro on Friday night to take the driver to Charleston after she was stranded; Elizabeth Foster for giving the driver a bed for the night after the breakdown and helping arrange a rental car; the Highway Patrol dispatcher who didn’t dismiss the driver’s fear and feeling of vulnerability at being stranded; Walterboro Mayor Bill Young who brought his truck to pick up the driver and her bikes and gave them a safe place to wait after the car was towed;
Tommy at RPM Automotive in Walterboro for allowing the driver to leave the Beloved Blue Convertible in his shop’s lot over the holiday until it could be towed away; the ETV Endowment for its car donation program that allowed the driver to part with her Beloved Blue Convertible knowing it would have another life; Zeke Bennett for the BMW referral; and Colby Alley at BMW of Columbia for his patience and non-salesy approach to selling the driver a new car.
A memorial service for the Beloved Blue Convertible will be held at a later date in conjunction with a celebration of the driver’s new car.
The earlier story of the Beloved Blue Convertible’s final days is available here.
When not working to promote the interests of SC cities and towns as deputy executive director of the Municipal Association of SC, Reba is passionate about travel, writing, learning to play the uke and staying connected with old friends. Reba can be reached at [email protected], @rebahcampbell or through her blog at randomconnectpoints.blogspot.com.
