Mustang Restoration for Fallen Soldier
Submitted by Auto Restoration 101 Blog
This is a story that I came across on the internet and thought it would be great to share.
A team of Mustang
enthusiast are going to restore a 1988 Mustang GT as a tribute to fallen U.S. Army Special Forces Maj. Jeff Calero. Calero was killed in action by an IED Oct. 29, 2007 while on a combat reconnaissance patrol in Kajaki, Afghanistan. The project was started by Sgt. Fabio Falorni after he inquired about the car sitting behind the Army National Guard Amory in Springfield, MA. This article comes from the Tewksbury Advocat.
Classic car to be restored in honor of soldier
Sat Jan 03, 2009, 10:00 AM EST
Tewksbury - A team of local Mustang enthusiasts has united to restore the 1988 Ford Mustang GT, belonging to fallen U.S. Army Special Forces Maj. Jeff Calero, as a mobile tribute to him. Ed Yessaian, of Tewksbury was amongst many other Mustang enthusiasts who worked on the car.
Calero was killed in action by an IED Oct. 29, 2007 while on a combat reconnaissance patrol in Kajaki, Afghanistan. He had planned to restore the car himself upon his return from active duty.
The project was founded by Sgt. Fabio Falorni of Methuen. Falorni is a veteran of two tours of duty in Iraq. He is presently assigned to Reserve Duty at the Army National Guard Armory in Hudson. He came across the Mustang belonging to Calero on Oct. 29, 2008 while picking up supplies for his unit at the Army National Guard Amory in Springfield.
Falorni saw the car sitting in a fenced in area behind the Armory. As a long time Mustang enthusiast, it piqued his curiosity as to why the car was there. When he inquired about it, he was told about how the car belonged to Maj. Calero who had been killed in action a year ago to that day. Upon Calero’s passing, the family did not know what to do with the car so it remained at the Springfield Armory where it had been parked since he deployed to Afghanistan in 2006. Falorni was informed that Calero had often talked about his plans for the car upon his return from active duty. He was also told that the Commander of the Armory was looking to have the car towed away since the family didn’t claim it. Falorni requested permission from the commander and the Calero family to restore the car. He also reached out to his fellow Mustang enthusiasts to recruit their help in restoring the Mustang. After 10 anxious days of waiting, he was granted permission to come and pick up the car.
Yessaian and Carol Meyer of Marlborough were amongst the many Mustang enthusiasts who responded to Falorni’s request for help. Together, they formed the team that now leads the restoration project. Meyer and Falorni traveled to the Springfield Armory on Nov. 16 to retrieve the car with her enclosed trailer. They met with Sfc. Ed Diaz at the Springfield Armory that day. Diaz spoke fondly of his friend Calero and his “illogical devotion” to his Mustang. Diaz expressed his and the family’s sincerest gratitude for the undertaking of the project. It is thru Diaz that Falorni learned of the specific plans Calero had for restoring his car.
As they pulled away from the armory with Calero’s car safely secured in the trailer, Diaz saluted them.
Calero’s Mustang was delivered to Falorni’s home in Methuen, where the initial prep work was started. A planning meeting was quickly organized and plans were laid out with Yessaian’s help, whose auto body restoration experience was tapped to coordinate the work.
To promote the project, the team leaders, Falorni, Yessaian and Meyer, decided to enter the car as a display at the Town Fair Tire World of Wheels car show that is being held Jan. 9-11 at the Bayside Expo Center in Boston. The Mustang, in its unrestored condition, and the team will be on hand along with members of Calero’s unit to talk about the project and honor Calero for his service to his country. They will sell t-shirts and wristbands to help raise funds for the completion of the project.
Donations are also being accepted thru Citizen’s Bank. Checks can be made payable to Project Fallen Hero. All proceeds will go to the restoration of the car with any remaining funds to be given to the Maj. Jeff Calero Scholarship Fund.
Are you a fan of the classics? We want to know your thoughts. Register on Classic Cars Blog now and get published within minutes. Before posting, it is recommended that you review our posting guidelines.
