Toronto, Ontario — July 30, 2019 – Although Ron Sealey lost his ability to hear in his early childhood, it didn’t stop him from creating an auto body empire. Now, nearly 40 years later, Sealey has passed away but has left a legacy of perseverance and dedication to the trade behind.
A self-taught repairman with a high attention to detail, Sealey tirelessly perfected his trade despite his impairment. Opening his own shop in 1983, the Nebraskan-native gathered a large customer base with his positive attitude, connection to the community, and his dedication to communicating with all of his customers.
“There just aren’t very many people in town who don’t know who he is,” eldest son Nick Sealey reported to the Hastings Tribune. “If you liked him, you loved him. He was one of those guys that always had a smile on his face and talked to everyone.”
Despite Sealey’s inability to hear, he diligently worked to handle every customer through writing notes, thumbs-up, and signage.
“Every now and then customers would bypass him and come to me and say, ‘I need to talk to your dad about something and I can’t talk to him.’ ” stated Nick. “ ‘Well sure you can,’ I’d tell them. “You know how to read and write, right?’ You could communicate with the man. Even though he couldn’t hear a damn word you said, he could communicate with anybody.”
Not only was Ron Sealey dedicated to connecting with others, but he was passionate about keeping the trade alive. He strived to educate his whole family on the importance of collision repair and succeeded.
“The amount of knowledge and ability he had that he was able to pass on to all of us just helped every one of us in so many ways,” reported Ron Sealey’s grandson, Zachary Healey. ” I’ll never be able to do some of the stuff he could. No way.”
Sealey’s passion for the trade carries on even after death. It was recommended that memorials for Ron may be given to the Central Community College the for Auto Body Technology Scholarship to be established in his name.
It was Sealey’s diligence to communicate and educate that will allow Sealey Body Shop to continue on without him.
“He really raised his kids to be great individuals and they will continue to run a great shop because of the training he gave them,” reported Ron’s former employer and friend, Greg Spady. “He’s had the leading body shop in town and that’s going to continue.”
