There are friends, good friends, and then friends who go so far beyond the extra mile that no amount of thanks is enough. Tom Bloomer is that kind of friend for Nancy McArtor. Here’s the story in her words.
In 2012, I left the San Francisco Bay Area after 31 years and had my beloved 1979 VW Bug convertible shipped to Ann Arbor. But not because I was ready to live there; I was on my way to Rome for what turned out to be a two-year adventure.
My Bug—her name is Dixie and not for any particular reason, but that’s what it is—needed a temporary home. Tom and I were on the Reunion Committee together and when he heard about my situation, he offered to put up Dixie in a barn on his farm. Neither of us could have imagined then that it would be 2024 before I would get her permanently out of the barn. And she was still running! For 12 years, he regularly started her up, kept her clean, and gave her shelter. And never once complained about it.
At the end of July, finally back in Ann Arbor to stay, I went out to get Dixie. We had her towed to a mechanic recommended by Martha Pott’s brother Tim, a top mechanic in his own right, to get the car worked over from top to bottom. She came out of the barn so clean, it looked like she had come straight out of a car wash! Tom has vintage vehicles of his own and appreciates old cars. But what he did for mine expanded the definition of friendship. Thank you, Tom!
