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ASHLEY DILLARD. AUTO REPAIR SHOP OWNER
FP: So, you've been here
your whole life?
AD: Been here my whole
life.
FP: And did you always
work with your dad in the
car shop?
AD: Pretty much,
yeah. Ever since I was old
enough to pump gas. We
used to have a shop in Five
Points where the yogurt
store is now.
FP: You mentioned you
have two degrees in forestry
from UGA. Why did you
choose not to use them?
AD: I had planned on
it. That's what I really
wanted to do. My dad was
ready to retire, and I kind
of didn't want to see a
good thing go to somebody
else, and we bought it from
him; Joey and I, bought it
from my dad.
Ashley Dillard and his brother Joey own Five Star
Automotive and Five Star Alignment on Macon Highway. They
have kept the business in the family: their father and younger
brother work for them.
Ashley emphasizes the importance of honest work, yearly
checkups for cars, and technical training. He sees the blue col
lar worker as the person who keeps America running.
Flagpole: Is your family from Athens?
Ashley Dillard: We are. My dad has been here all his life,
and my mom moved here when she was nine from Tifton. So,
they've been here. My grandfather was with the Agricultural
Extension and Forestry at the university until he retired in, I
think, '80. And then my dad's dad has always worked with cars
in dealerships, and old-school, that used to be downtown...
that's where he worked. I
guess that's how my dad
got into the car business.
FP: Do you hope to teach your son like your dad taught you?
AD: Yeah, yeah. I hope so. You know, it's just the little
things that everybody needs to know about their cars that can
help you out in the future, just the everyday maintenance stuff
that you can do yourself. It's good to learn. But maybe they
won't need as much as we've learned over the past. But I'm not
a mechanic. I don't claim to know everything about cars. We
know enough, now. We're like the service writers. The dealers
have a service writer, shop foreman and the techs and every
thing, and we kind of have to do a little bit of everything.
FP: Do you think it built character for you as a kid to come in
here and learn things?
AD: Yeah, yeah. It's always good to know a trade, some sort
of skill. A lot of people go to college, go straight through, and
never really learn how to
do something. The first two
years of my college was
learning nothing but soci
ology and psychology, and
if you're not going to go
into a field like that... it
helps you be a little better
well-rounded as a person,
but you need to learn how
to do something.
That's the way I feel.
I think the tech colleges
are still so important...
Everybody kind of looks
down on the blue-collar
worker, but that's what
keeps America going,
whether you like it or not.
FP: But your dad still
works at the place down the
street?
AD: We opened that
place, Five Star Alignment, up about three years ago just to
kind of... really ran out of room to do everything. Just try
ing to stay in business to do complete car care, so we do all
the heavy repair work up here, and they do all the tires and
brakes. I call it the gravy work. And we asked him and my little
brother to come in with us and run it.
FP: So, he didn't stay retired long.
AD: No, he likes it, though. He said he likes working for us
instead of working for himself. He doesn't have to make any of
the real hard decisions.
FP: Do you get to tell your dad what to do?
AD: To a certain extent, yeah...
Joey Dillard: [Chiming in] Whether he listens or not...
AD: ...You kind of got to tiptoe around some stuff. It's part
of doing business with family.
FP: Do either of you have any children who you hope wilt be
involved with the business someday?
AD: It depends. I've got a two-and-a-half-year-old girl—I
don't think she'll have anything to do with it, but she might—
and a one-and-a-half-year-old boy. We all grew up working
here a little bit at a time. I took shop class in high school, Lat
you learn more here in two weeks than you would in a class,
just watching the mechanics who have been here throughout
the years and done a real good job.
FP: You mentioned ear
lier that you don't go down
town very often. What do
you like and dislike about
Athens?
AD: I don't think we got
that kind of time. [Laughs]
I like the small-town
feel... The university is
really neat. We do a lot of student business. We've got a lot of
parents in Atlanta and all over the country, really, that we deal
with on a regular basis...
I do live in Watkinsville now... It is a very small town.
Watkinsville is a neat little town. It's got as much history as
Athens, if not more. I mean, that's where they wanted to put
the University of Georgia is in Watkinsville, but they had a bar.
They had the Eagle Tavern, and they didn't want the university
near an area with a bar. It's right there on Main Street. It's still
there. And it's funny because up until five years ago, Oconee
County was a dry county. There were no bars, and you couldn't
buy alcohol or anything. Obviously, things change, but it was
like a complete opposite of what they envisioned the univer
sity to be.
FP: What do you do besides work on cars?
AD: I watch the kids. That's about it. I love to fish. My dad
and my little brother are both captains, and they spend as
much time on the water as possible, and I try to, too, but it's
hard with the kids.
FP: What is it like being a father to young children?
AD: It's very fun. It's kind of aggravating sometimes. You're
so used to being yourself, and then you have kids, and it's not
about you anymore. It's about the kids.
Emily Patrick
FP: Do you consider
yourself a blue-collar
worker?
AD: Yeah. Sure. We're
the ones out there getting
greasy and dirty. We've got
to keep everybody moving.
jA, MI Cr K
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DAVID W. GRIFFETH, U
Attorney
announces the relocation of his law office
to Downtown in the Fred Building
220 College Ave. Ste. 612,
Athens, Georgia
(706) 353-1360
(former location 957 Baxter St)
Admitted to the Bar of the United States
Supreme Court since 1976*
‘And lesser courts
Specializing in
Criminal: DUI, Drug Cases, Under-Age Possession and more.
Civil: Personal Injury, Wrongful Death, Criminal Defense,
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JULY 20,2011-FLAGPOLE.COM 27
