Jack and Dor DeLong are more than friends to the National
Corvette Museum, they are family. They come to Bowling Green often to visit their Museum family,
and participate in many of Museum in Motion events as well.
They are Museum Lifetime Members who have made donations, bought bricks and
“purchased” three acres in support the NCM Motorsports Park. A club ambassador
and writer, Jack is always promoting the Corvette lifestyle and documenting his
adventures with his wife and his Corvette family. With both of them, it is all
about making and sharing special memories, so it was no surprise when they
decided to take Museum delivery of their new C7 Corvette and donate their 1992
Corvette to the Museum at the same time.
“This car is a special car to Dor and I,” Jack says with a
smile on his face and glistening eyes. “It was a gift that we gave to ourselves
when we reached a point in life where we could really enjoy it. It was the
first car we ever took to the Museum, and the first car that we took back to
its birthplace at the Assembly Plant. We put many thousands of miles on this
car going to countless NASCAR races, club events, and road tours, making
memories every mile along the way.”
As much as he loves his other Corvettes, when the C7
Corvette came out Jack was already thinking of the memories that could be made
in it. To sell Dor on the idea, he parked their C6 next to one. Dor couldn’t
resist walking around it. “I looked at it and loved it. Especially the
back end,” she said. “I told him right then to go get one.” Together they
specked it out and decided to take the R8C delivery option at the Museum.
On May 27, 2014, with their Corvette family watching from
all over the country on the Museum's web cams, Delivery Team Member Doug Johnson dropped
the fob to the C7 in Dor’s open hands, while Jack dropped the keys of their
1992 into Museum Executive Director Wendell Strode’s hand. Surrounded by guests
and staff who were smiling, clapping and cheering, another memory was made.
This is the second time the DeLongs have donated a Corvette to the Museum, the first being a few years ago when they delivered their 1988 Blue Metallic Vette.
Thank you Jack and Dor for donating another Corvette
to the Museum and for taking delivery of your new one with us. We are so glad
that you are a part of our family.
For information on how you can donate your car to the
National Corvette Museum, go to: corvettemuseum.org/donations/autos.shtml
David Donoho was a die-hard Corvette enthusiast, developing
an infatuation from a young age and even saving up enough money to buy his
first – a brand new 1962 – when he was in high school. David was so obsessed, in fact, that he
earned the nickname “The Weather Man” because his friends would tease him about
how closely he would watch the weather, and quickly take his Corvette home when
there was a chance of rain.
David loved the car and had a kindred spirit towards the
car… so when it came time to make plans for his estate he knew he wanted it to
go to a loving home where it would be respected and cared for. “David didn’t want it sold; he wanted it to
remain well maintained by those who would protect it,” said longtime friend and
attorney Beth Sease. Beth had suggested
David consider donating his prized vehicle to the National Corvette
Museum. “Wendell [Strode, Executive
Director] visited and developed a relationship with David. Wendell assured David that the Museum would preserve
it according to his wishes.”
“David was an unassuming and simple man,” said Beth. She added that as a long time blue-collar
worker, David saved his money and invested it wisely to have the funds to
support his Corvette hobby. David was
the proud owner of four Corvettes in his lifetime – a 1987, 2001 and 2006 (in
addition to the 1962) and all were garage kept.
He personally cared for the cars and only had people he trusted do work
on them.
As David’s health prevented him from being able to get out
and enjoy the car, Beth encouraged him to donate his 1962 before his passing to
reap maximum donation and tax benefits.
The car is black with red interior and mostly in its original condition –
with the exception of the convertible top being replaced with a hard top. In 2011, David turned over the keys to his
beloved car – a car he had owned all of its life… just over 50 years. Beth says that turning the car over to the
museum seemed to be the best thing to benefit David and preserve his memory.
After various health issues, David passed on June 6, 2013 at
the age of 76. In his will he left
another gift to the museum… funds to care for his car. “David’s cash gift will help us ensure that
his car is maintained in a way that would please him,” said Wendell. “To be gifted a Corvette that has had only
one owner and been kept in such great condition all these years is rare.”
On February 12, 2014 Mother Nature struck the Corvette
Museum, taking David’s prized car several feet down into a sinkhole. Luckily, the Corvette was one of the last to
fall in and suffered minor damage in comparison to the others. GM’s Design Center in Warren, MI will be
overseeing the restoration of the car.
“While it breaks our heart that this happened to David’s car, we know
that it will be in good hands with GM overseeing the repairs. Several experts from the National Corvette
Restorers Society have also reached out to offer their expertise,” said
Wendell. “We look forward to getting the
car repaired and back to its former glory.”
