Fleet and customized service vehicles help regional businesses succeed
Commercial vehicle sales at Krapohl Ford & Lincoln come in all shapes and sizes. It’s a Mt. Pleasant city work truck, a customized van for a small business, a fleet of vehicles for a large operation.
Autume Balcom recently assumed leadership of Krapohl’s commercial sales, taking over the role Stan Miller filled. Stan recently retired after 33 years with Krapohl Ford & Lincoln.
Autume said she enjoys learning how Ford vehicles help local business operations thrive.
“It’s a full-service relationship,” Autume said. “We learn about what they need to succeed, and as a full-service dealership, they know they’ll get the necessary follow-up repairs and service to keep their businesses running.”
Autume said she works to learn about each business or government account, and she has been on the road visiting commercial customers.
“Going out to the farms and other locations is another layer of convenience for them, and it is part of the services we offer,” she said.
Autume said Ford commercial vehicles offer business-oriented extras such as Ford Pro telematics, a software package that allows managers to monitor vehicle location, fuel consumption, EV range and receive indicators for oil changes and other maintenance.
Krapohl also helps business owners with service packages and a financing tool it calls FinSimple.
“We can help a company that needs a large fleet all the way down to a one-person small business, like a plumber,” Autume said. “We maintain the traditional Krapohl family feel for all of our customers while we work to understand what specialty vehicles they need.”
To learn more about fleet sales or customized commercial vehicles, call 989-317-2374.
Racing to promote agriculture’s attributes
Milk Money Racing dragster, owner will be at Krapohl Car Show
You draw attention when you put an image of a cow with sunglasses on the hood of a car.
The strategy works for Mike Sheehan, who races his 1988 Mustang GT stock eliminator drag car in NHRA and National Muscle Car Association events and takes the dragster around as he promotes agriculture.
“It’s been pretty crazy,” Mike said. “We’ve gotten a lot of attention from the Michigan Farm Bureau and the Michigan Farm News, at the races and when we’ve shown the car.”
One of the next stops for Milk Money Racing is the Krapohl Ford & Lincoln Car Show on Sept. 7. The car with a cow in sunglasses will be hard for attendees to miss, but Mike makes it easy to find his spot. He’ll be under a 10×20 shade and near a large cutout of a cow he calls Mustang Moo-lly.
“Kids enjoy having their photo taken with the car or the cow,” Mike said.
Mike works in sales at McConnell Farm Supply in Rosebush, and he says a life working in agriculture has been good to him. “I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for the dairy industry.”
According to U.S Agricultural census numbers, Gratiot County has more than 54,000 cattle and calves and produces $104 million annually in milk sales. Isabella County has more than 29,000 cattle and calves and produces $37 million annually in milk sales. Michigan’s $15.7 billion milk production industry is the sixth largest in the nation.
Car show details
- Date: Thursday, Sept. 7
- Time: 9 a.m.-3 p.m.
- Music: DJ Dwayne
Quick Lane advisor by day, DJ Dwayne by night
Krapohl’s Dwayne Shuckerow passes along his love of music at events
People recognize Dwayne Shuckerow for many reasons. As a Service Advisor in the Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center at Krapohl Ford & Lincoln, he works with customers in person and on the phone.
People also recognize him as DJ Dwayne, who handles the music each year at the Krapohl Car Show. He’ll be back in front of the crowd for the third consecutive year when the classic cars and hot rods return to our lot on Thursday, Sept. 7.
“It’s been really fun,” Dwayne said. “The crowd really gets into it. I get to go out there and have fun all day and bring my family. We have a ’96 F-150 that we bring with just 16,000 original miles on it. It’s all stock.”
Dwayne said auto show enthusiasts prefer music from the 1950s and ’60s. “I’ll play that all day and take some requests.”
He was introduced to DJing by the father of his best friend. The boys helped out by carrying the equipment — which in those days included boxes of albums and 45s. He partnered with an established DJ for about eight years and saved money to buy his own computers, amps, speakers and lights. Eventually, he was ready to go and then bought out his partner’s rights to more than 120,000 songs. He adds to that collection with a subscription to Apple Music.
Most of Dwayne’s DJ work involves weddings, school dances and parties. He does enough weddings that he became ordained so he could serve as the wedding officiant and then supply the atmosphere at the reception.
He works as a DJ about 20 times a year. He hasn’t done much marketing and figures if he did, he would be too busy. He passes out business cards at weddings and gets most of his business from those conversations.
Music is a bedrock for Dwayne, who notes his mother “sang to me all my life.” For a while, he served as the lead singer in a few bar bands.
“That’s why I think I’m a good DJ,” he said. “I like all music. If I play the 50s and 60s, I’m fine with it. If the people there are happy and vibing off it, that’s what gets me excited. At the car show, it’s all of the customers, all of the employees, everybody having a good time. I like it.”
As a Quick Lane advisor, he focuses on the customers.
“Every once in a while, somebody is angry. I understand because I put myself in their shoes. I try to help them the best I can. I treat everybody like I would my brother, my mom or an uncle. I treat the customers as well as I would like to be treated.”
Interested in Dwayne’s work as a DJ? He can be reached at 989-708-4080.
Women’s Initiative group a powerful champion for women and girls
From the start, the Mount Pleasant Women’s Initiative fund to support women and girls was a bit of a surprise to Mark Smith, co-owner and General Manager of Krapohl Ford & Lincoln.
His mother, Kay Krapohl Smith, co-founded the Mt. Pleasant Area Community Foundation fund with Judy Smith in 2003. The two women weren’t related, and Mark wasn’t sure how well they knew each other.
“I’m not even sure how they came to be friends — although I’m glad they did,” Mark Smith said. “They had different circles of friends and different political views. It’s somewhat of a mystery to those who knew my mom.”
Judy Smith, who remains a philanthropist and voice for community issues, has fond memories of creating the fund with Kay 20 years ago.
“There was so much momentum for women when we started the endowment,” Judy said. “We were feeling more confident in the workplace, speaking up about our careers, and giving money to our favorite causes.”
She said it’s important to work with people who have different views, talents, personalities and interests, because then creativity, connections and impact are at their greatest.
The Women’s Initiative Fund launched with a goal of raising $30,000. Within four weeks, Kay, Judy and a small but passionate group of local women had secured $80,000.
In the 20 years since, only the interest has been used to issue more than $150,000 in grants to local organizations that provide vital services and support to women and girls. This protects the endowment, including new donations that continue to come in.
When Kay passed in 2008, her obituary listed more than 30 volunteer organizations she had served. Friends she made by working and volunteering in multiple communities attended her funeral.
“My mother made lots of friends,” Mark said. “She had a way of fitting in with a lot of different groups and in different scenarios.”
From Kay’s Day to Kay’s Way
The Women’s Initiative Committee at the Community Foundation honored Kay by creating Kay’s Day, an annual spring fundraiser and social event. That continued until 2020, when the pandemic halted most gatherings. The spirit of Kay’s Day lives on in the restructured Kay’s Way, a supply drive that started May 10 and will conclude May 24. Krapohl Ford & Lincoln and Weichert Realtors/Broadway Realty are drop-off sites for the supplies.
On May 18, every dollar — every penny — spent by customers on oil changes at the Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center at Krapohl Ford & Lincoln will go to the Women’s Initiative for the Kay’s Way drive.
The supply drive will benefit three charitable causes. The Care Store and Clothing INC again are part of the drive, and new this year is The William Ellis Brockman Infant Pantry, which is part of Community Compassion Network. All three have space at The William and Janet Strickler Nonprofit Center on High Street.
Wish lists for the Kay’s Way supply drive:
The Care Store: Shampoo/conditioner, deodorant, razors/shaving cream, body lotion and wash, feminine hygiene products.
Clothing INC: Bras (larger sizes), women and girls’ underwear, socks, other clothing for women and girls.
Infant Pantry: Formula (any kind), bottles, bottle brushes, sippy cups with hard and or soft tops, teething biscuits. Also: Care items such as baby shampoo, wash, lotion, diaper creams, pacifiers, teethers. A longer wish list is on the Infant Pantry website.
Judy Smith says the Women’s Initiative plays an important role in the county, and she’s pleased it hasn’t strayed from its original mission to support women and girls.
“In thinking about the future, I would encourage those who lead the Women’s Initiative — or any community organization — to look around continually and find women who have energy and passion,” Judy said. “Engage them. Mentor them. Help them become the next generation of leaders who people in the community look up to.”
Annual Kay’s Way supply drive launches May 10
Women and girls find support from Women’s Initiative group’s efforts
Two decades into its mission, the Mt. Pleasant Women’s Initiative continues to grow and find ways to assist women and girls in Isabella County.
The group serves as the committee managing the Women’s Initiative Fund at the Mt. Pleasant Area Community Foundation. The endowed fund has awarded more than $150,000 in grants since giving out its first $500 in 2005, two years after the fund was created.
Kay Krapohl Smith, daughter of Bob Krapohl, who founded Krapohl Ford & Lincoln with his brother, Harold, co-founded the Women’s Initiative 20 years ago with local philanthropist and community champion Judy Smith.
Kay’s Way is how the Women’s Initiative honors the memory of Kay while calling attention to the latest needs of women and girls. This year’s Kay’s Way supply drive will be conducted May 10-24, and Krapohl Ford & Lincoln again will serve as a drop-off hub. Last year, supplies overflowed from the bed of an F-150 on the dealership showroom floor to support the group’s effort. Also, Weichert Realtors/Broadway Realty returns as another drop-off site for supplies.
On May 18, every dollar — every penny — spent by customers on oil changes at the Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center at Krapohl will go to the Women’s Initiative for the Kay’s Way drive.
The supply drive will benefit three charitable causes. The Care Store and Clothing INC again are part of the drive, and new this year is The William Ellis Brockman Infant Pantry, which is part of Community Compassion Network. All three have space at The William and Janet Strickler Nonprofit Center on High Street.
Clothing INC is in its 10th year, and its volunteer staff works with families by appointment to help them pick out donated gently used or new clothing. Executive Director Bryan Chapman said appointments often are booked four or five weeks out. On a typical day, Clothing INC can schedule 10 families. Chapman said the Kay’s Way drive in 2022 helped families obtain clothing they needed, and grants from the foundation paid for items generally not donated, especially women’s underwear and bras.
“Those items are so expensive,” he said. “The grants help us meet the need.”
The Infant Pantry moved to The Strickler Nonprofit Center in 2021 from its previous home in the basement of the First Presbyterian Church. Volunteers work with Isabella County families with children from 0 to 4 years old, supplying them with formula, baby food, diapers and baby care products.
“Our mission is to help women and girls in our community,” said Shannon Vautrin Browne, co-chair of the Women’s Initiative with Leah Rau. “What better way to help with them being new mothers, and including infants is a good fit for this event.”
The Care Store, led by Executive Director Julia Eigenbrood, works through more than 30 local agencies — such as the Commission on Aging and Salvation Army — whose case workers or staff members assign individuals and families “Care Bucks.” At The Care Store, Isabella County residents can use the Care Bucks to purchase personal hygiene and household cleaning products.
All three agencies have wish lists for the Kay’s Way supply drive:
The Care Store: Shampoo/conditioner, deodorant, razors/shaving cream, body lotion and wash, feminine hygiene products.
Clothing INC: Bras (larger sizes), women and girls underwear, socks, other clothing for women and girls.
Infant Pantry: Formula (any kind), bottles, bottle brushes, sippy cups with hard and or soft tops, teething biscuits. Also: Care items such as baby shampoo, wash, lotion, diaper creams, pacifiers, teethers. A longer wish list is on the Infant Pantry website.
Pet supply drive will help HATS serve community
Drop off peanut butter, paper towels, treats and more in Krapohl’s showroom
At first, it looks like a typical grocery list: Peanut butter, paper towels, large trash bags, bleach, bite-sized dog treats, Dawn dish soap.
The Humane Animal Treatment Society counts on donations of those everyday items — along with cat litter, canned cat and dog food and specifically, Purina One Adult Dry Dog Food and Purina One Dry Adult Cat Food — to handle the increasing need for space at the shelter and spaying and neutering.
“A few rolls of paper towels, things like that, really make a difference,” said Amanda Tillotson, executive director of HATS. “All of those add up to big savings. If we can save on little things, it allows us to put more money toward medical expenses.”
Krapohl Ford & Lincoln is partnering with HATS for an 11-day Stock the Shelter pet supply drive. Our dealership at 1415 E. Pickard Street in Mt. Pleasant is a drop-off site, as is the HATS office at 1105 S. Isabella Rd. The drive begins Monday and ends Thursday, March 23.
We also will conduct an oil change fundraiser on Wednesday, March 15. Come to Krapohl’s Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center, get an oil change, and 50% of the sale will go to HATS.
Tillotson said the Purina One brand for food is necessary to provide consistency in the diets of the shelter’s cats and dogs.
HATS is gearing up for the warmer weather and the annual spring surge of kittens. Tillotson said she’s also noticed an increase in the number of dogs in need of a home.
“We’re seeing community members who are struggling to feed their pets and coming to us for pet food. We’re receiving quite a few calls from people who are homeless and are having to give up their pets.”
The HATS animal clinic, now in its 10th year, also is busy, with an average of 2,000 spay and neuter surgeries a year.
“We were shut down briefly during the COVID lockdown, but once we opened up, the demand was higher than ever,” Tillotson said. “That’s good and bad. It’s great so many people want to fix their animals, but we wish we could help them all. It’s unfortunate that we are booking out three, four months ahead.”
The shopping list of needed supplies:
Cat & dog canned food (any brand)
Purina ONE Adult Dry Dog Food
Purina ONE Adult Dry Cat Food
Peanut butter
Dog treats (bite size)
Paper towels
Bleach
Dawn dish soap
Cat litter
Large trash bags
Krapohl owners, staff grateful for 2022 Large Business Award
The annual Mt. Pleasant Area Chamber of Commerce annual awards banquet Saturday was a memorable celebration of the community with the big finale announcement of the Outstanding Citizen of the Year award winner, Don Hire.
Congratulations, Don, and thank you for your years of volunteer work with Sacred Heart Academy, the Rotary Club of Mt. Pleasant and many other organizations and causes.
At Krapohl Ford & Lincoln, we were honored to receive the Large Business award, sponsored by Great Lakes Bay Michigan Works. We especially are impressed with the Chamber’s community involvement focus in determining what companies it honors. The award now stands on a shelf behind the reception desk in our showroom/service area, a constant reminder to all of us at the dealership that our efforts on the job and in the community are valued.
Serving Mt. Pleasant and Isabella County has been part of our core values since 1950. The company’s community impact started with dealership founders Robert and Harold Krapohl, who volunteered, sponsored and embraced initiatives, programs and organizations throughout Isabella County for the benefit of area residents.
Kay Smith, the daughter of Robert and Geraldine Krapohl, dove into so many community initiatives that she was the 2006 Outstanding Citizen of the Year. And current owners Mark and Shelly Smith and Tom and Mary Krapohl maintain the family’s belief that it’s vital for local businesses to thank and support customers by making the community a better place to live.
During the past two years, our commitment to community has included addressing the national new car shortage by keeping new vehicles on our lot for area residents rather than selling to out-of-state brokers offering top dollar to buy them.
And as an employer, we work hard to treat our team well, from supporting a diverse group of staff members as they pursue advanced certifications to offering mentorship programs and growth opportunities for employees.
As we like to say in our hashtags: #LocalDealership #LocalCommitment and so importantly, #WillYouJoinUs? Giving back and taking care of others truly takes all of us.
Some of our recent community service activities:
- Humane Animal Treatment Society (support of fundraisers, free loan of vehicles for travel)
- Women’s Initiative (help with organization of annual Kay’s Way event & drop-off site)
- Art Reach Festival of Banners (key partner, annual sponsor of banners)
- Krapohl Ford & Lincoln Car Show (annual event at dealership)
- Toys for Tots (drop-off site for Cram the Cruiser)
- Isabella Community Soup Kitchen (partner, supporter, sponsor and promoter)
- Community Cancer Services (longtime sponsor, promoter)
- Central Michigan Baja Team (painted vehicles in Body Shop, loan of vehicle to travel)
- Tours for high school students interested in working on engines
- Mt. Pleasant Parks & Recreation (partner, sponsor, promoter)
- Mt. Pleasant Soccer Club (partner, sponsor)
- City of Mt. Pleasant (provide low-cost vehicles)
- Chippewa Watershed Conservancy (sponsor, promoter)
- Central Michigan Veterans Endowment Fund (sponsor)
- Special Olympics Michigan (sponsor, host of event)
- Green Tree Co-op Market (capital campaign investor, promoter)
- Give Local Isabella (2022 employee match program, in addition to general support and promotion)
- CMU Public Broadcasting (supporter)
- Shepherd Maple Syrup Festival Car, Truck and Motorcycle Show (sponsor)
- “Touring with Tom” videos spotlight area gems (promotion of local businesses)
Technicians put vital public transportation back on the road
The lower-right side of this Harrison Community Schools bus was bent and ripped when it arrived at the Krapohl Body Shop.
RVs and tractor-trailers have company in the largest bays in the Krapohl Body Shop. A school bus from Harrison and community transit buses from Roscommon and Alma recently were repaired by body shop technicians.
“The school bus was caved in on its right side,” said Body Shop Manager Kevin Telfor. “We were able to refabricate the metal needed, and then we repainted it.”
Telfor said a school bus body repair isn’t much different than a passenger vehicle, but the metal tends to be thicker and heavier. He said the school bus project needed to be done on a tight time frame because the Harrison Community School District needed it back on the road.
Another recent repair involved the main door on a bus from the Alma Transit Center. Like the school bus, metal work and refabricating material was involved.
A 4,524-square-foot addition completed in 2021 allows the Krapohl Body Shop team to work on RVs, semi-tractor-trailers and buses in two large repair bays and a 58-foot paint booth.
Customers are bringing their RVs and semi-trailers from more than two hours away. Telfor said Krapohl Ford and Lincoln’s 70-year reputation, as well as its position as the only locally owned and operated full-service dealership, speak loudly to customers.
The primary door to this Alma Transit Center vehicle was damaged when it arrived at the Krapohl Body Shop.
The nearly completed door looks like new.
Marine Toys for Tots has been around for 75 years and delivered more than 627 million toys and books to children. Krapohl Ford & Lincoln is once again a drop off for the annual Isabella County Toys for Tots event, and we’ll wrap up this year’s drive Thursday when we Cram a Cruiser from 3-5:30 p.m.
We have collection boxes for Toys For Tots set up in our sales showroom, Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center and the Krapohl Body Shop. Donated toys and books should be new and unwrapped.
Eastman’s Antique Apples/Forbidden Ciders in Wheeler is first stop in video series
Welcome to “Touring with Tom,” an occasional series designed to showcase the hidden gems, longtime favorites and exciting new spots that make Michigan’s central region so special. Tom Krapohl, second-generation owner of Krapohl Ford & Lincoln, invites you along to experience, reminisce and maybe discover something new. Local Dealership. Local Commitment.
For Tom Krapohl, family trips in a car when he was a child usually meant another drive to Bay City to visit grandparents.
“It was to their house, and then to the graveyard. We got to not like those trips,” Tom, co-owner of Krapohl Ford & Lincoln said, laughing. “I really can’t think of any highlights. We rode in a ’57 Ford Fairlane. There were a lot of station wagons because there were three of us kids.”
Eastman’s Antique Apples/Forgotten Ciders co-owner Nicole Ward shows Tom and Mary Krapohl and their grandchildren Merritt, 10, and Jake, 8, how to load an old-style apple carrier.
As parents themselves, Tom and his wife, Mary, enjoyed taking short trips and traveling on vacations. They regularly included their children.
“Every year, we would do a family trip,” Mary said. “So now, our kids do. Our girls just did a trip to California to see Pink. They wanted Tom and I to go! I was like, ‘You know, you guys do this.’”
Tom and Mary’s love of adventure and arriving in a Ford continue. For the inaugural “Touring with Tom,” we arranged a behind-the-scenes look at Eastman’s Antique Apples in Wheeler. Like Krapohl Ford & Lincoln, the orchard is a multi-generational operation.
Tom and Mary were joined by two of their grandchildren, Merritt, 10, and Jake, 8. They rode in one of Ford’s hottest models, a full-size 2020 Bronco Wildtrak sporting an orange metallic tri-coat.
Orchard co-owner Nicole Ward set up Merritt and Jake in a prime spot while Tom donned the gear of long-ago apple pickers — a metal container with a cloth opening and straps to secure it to his body. The boys helped fill it after Ward taught them how to pick an apple by lifting and turning so it snapped off the tree.
She also brought tiny apples — a tart crabapple variety — for the boys. Both took one bite and grimaced. One signaled his review with a thumbs down.
Ward, who operates the farm with her husband, Rafe, and other family members, said the fifth-generation orchard has more than 1,000 varieties of apples and more than 3,000 apple trees.
“Basically, my husband’s grandfather and uncle treated apple trees like a baseball card collection,” Ward said. “Over time, we’ve learned what a rare, unique gem we have. I haven’t fully vetted it, but I think we are the largest commercial orchard — in terms of varieties. We might be the last holder of some of these types of apples.”
While the orchard itself is no longer open to the public, people do visit to enjoy its Forgotten Ciders tasting room, food trucks and live music. The apple variety creates a series of hard ciders with unique tastes, including the best-selling, red, dry and tart “Mad Russian.”
Eastman’s Forgotten Ciders is located at 1058 W. Midland-Gratiot County Line Road in Wheeler.
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