Don’s Repair in Charles City to close up shop

By Kelly Terpstra, kterpstra@charlescitypress.com

If a drive belt needed replacing, Don Skretta was your man.

How about that spark plug that wouldn’t fire right? Just call up Don’s Repair in Charles City and he’d have your lawnmower working like new.

After 34 years of repairing lawnmowers, selling chainsaws or finding the right part for a tree trimmer, Skretta could fix it or find it.

He’s calling it a career after this month.

“I’m 79 years old right now so I thought, well, maybe it’s time to retire,” said Skretta.

Skretta, along with his office/sales manager of 20 years, Linda Davis, will close up shop after an end-of-the-month auction on Saturday, Sept. 28. Don’s Repair has held a going out of business sale since July that will lead up to the auction.

Skretta said everything’s gotta go – including Don and Linda.

He said the building has been sold to L&J Industries, a metal manufacturing company just down the road from Skretta that is owned and operated by Chris Garden.

“I appreciate everything the community has done,” said Skretta. “It’s getting to the point where I can’t do some things that I used to do.”

Skretta opened his lawnmower business – he’s a registered Toro dealer – in 1985. Back then he ran his handyman/repair shop out on Old Highway 18 where C.H. Wilson Transport is now located. Then he moved his headquarters in 2000 northeast of town just past Denny’s Recycling on 13th Avenue.

What are Skretta’s best memories of a successful business that catered to customers as far away as Mason City, Clear Lake, Clarksville or Osage?

“Just getting everything done. Everything works good,” he said.

Good humor leads to happy sales, which equals satisfied clients, Skretta said.

“Customer service is real important,” he said.

Getting the job done right and on time was also important. Sometimes that meant coming in on Sundays after working six days a week.

“He has not had a vacation since I’ve started working here,” said Linda, who Don hired in 1999, right before the move to the current location.

Skretta worked for John Deere Implement for 22 years prior to starting up Don’s Repair. He worked on combines, tractors and balers for about 15 years.

“When he moved to this building in 2000 he was still doing farm equipment, but we got taken over with lawn mower repair,” said Davis. “It probably wasn’t a choice. It was just something that evolved out of moving.”

Davis said Skretta made the garage door bigger once the move was complete so heavier machinery could fit into the shop.

Skretta said he usually always employed two mechanics – full-time in the summer, part-time in the winter when business slowed down.

He said he is thankful for all that Davis has provided the business for two decades – whether that meant ordering a part, setting up a sale or working through a customer’s issue with their machines.

“She’s been doing great,” Skretta said.

Davis said their working relationship has been fantastic – almost always.

“Ninety-nine percent of the time. Twenty years – we’re going to have our disagreements. But we get along good,” said Davis. “He helped me through all the times I was raising my kids.”

Skretta married his wife, Fran, when he was 19. That was 60 years ago, in 1959. Don and Fran have three girls and one boy, plus grandchildren.

Skretta’s retirement will free up plenty of time to travel and keep in touch with his family.

“Everybody asks me what I’m going to do when you get done, I said, ‘Well, I haven’t figured that out yet,’” said Skretta.

Davis thinks Skretta will come up with something to occupy his free time when he’s not visiting family. It will more than likely deal with parts and getting his hands dirty, she said.

She remembers many days at the office where Skretta’s wheels would get to turning overnight. That handyman mentality would produce great ideas in the morning that would remedy most fix-it problems.

“He’ll come in and say, ‘I was laying in bed last night and I got to thinking,’” Davis laughed.