In a nationwide industry where customers spend half a billion dollars each year, Chip Romano is an elite name among the restorers of antique cars.
In November alone, he worked on MBNA President and CEO John Cochran's 1965 Corvette, Jamie Wyeth's 1950 Mercedes-Benz 170 Cabriolet and former middleweight boxer Dave Tiberi's 1980 Corvette.
But his passion is more and more reaching out to youth to bring them into the industry and help them find careers at a time when they're lacking direction. And that's saying a lot, because his passion started behind the wheel of his older sister's 1973 Volkswagen Beetle when he was 14.
"I hot-wired her car and drove it around for a week," he said, smiling. "That was the beginning of my fascination with old cars."
Not that he's wanting youth to act recklessly. Quite the opposite, he wants them to find a path in life so they can succeed and have a life they enjoy.
If he's able to start an apprenticeship program for students in the Colonial School District, he's already got an idea of what he'll expect. He, District Superintendent George Meney and Delcastle Technical High School automotive technology teacher Paul Davis have been working on the idea.
"That's something the kids are interested in," Davis said. "We'd like to give somebody like that some trainees."
They've probably found their somebody. "I'm looking for the kids who don't have a direction and have no idea that this is out here," Romano said.
He's probably their best option because, as Davis explains, it's not easy to find the resources or willing and able people to teach restoration.
"The problem is, those cars aren't available for training," he said. "You're not going to take a car that costs thousands and thousands of dollars and use it as a training tool. That's a very different kind of job, as opposed to going out and repairing people's daily transportation."
Daily transportation it's definitely not.
Consider the 1966 Lincoln Continental of former pro boxer Bernard Hopkins. He paid $80,000 for Romano to restore the car from end to end and top to bottom over a 19-month period.
"Chip takes his time — but he's good," Hopkins said. He's sent two Bentleys and the Lincoln to Romano. The Lincoln won first prize at the Lincoln and Continental Owners Club Eastern National Meet in Lancaster, Pa.
"You take it to a car show and your car wins first place. That's real. It goes to tell you that your money was well spent. They go through that car top to bottom," Hopkins said.
JEMS Classics is Romano's business since 2005; he named it from some of the letters in his daughters' names, Jessica and Emily. He has a 10,000-square-foot shop and works with Bruce Hofmann, who does much of the bodywork.
"I would describe him as the Jamie Wyeth of antique cars," Romano said.
He believes today's students can become elite restorers of incredible antique cars, helping to keep the industry and the hobby alive for years to come.
"I'm looking for the kids who don't have a direction and have no idea that this is out here," said Romano.
But that doesn't mean he's going to leave them there or simply let them remain that way.
"They would need to maintain a certain grade-point average to stay in the program, that kind of thing," he said. "If you give them some kind of incentive to stay in school, you might make some more productive people in the world."
District Superintendent Meney has said an after-school activity or club is the best place to start. He said Romano seemed open to that.
"It's an area that a lot of kids are getting into, I understand. It's something we're going to explore further."
Romano said, "I guess I'm just at a point in life that I'm looking at a bigger picture. I want to help out. This is something that needs to be passed on to the next generation."
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Information from: The News Journal of Wilmington, Del., http://www.delawareonline.com