McGregor’s wish was to keep the shop open
Wayne McGregor could always see the good in people.
He had a positive outlook and great sense of humour, even throughout his 14-year battle with brain cancer, said his wife Kristen McGregor. Wayne liked to joke around and tease his family, friends and customers. He also wanted to make sure they were well taken care of.
“He was a hard worker and was very dedicated to his customers,” said Kristen.
When Wayne was diagnosed with cancer, he was told he would have one year to live but he defied the doctor who told him that and went to on to build a business and support his family.
“He always said he would go out with his fists up, fighting,” said his daughter, Brookelyne.
Many of his customers wouldn’t have known that the mechanic and owner of Creemore Automotive and Transmission was ill.
The McGregor family moved into their new Creemore home in 2002 and two months later, Wayne had a grand mal seizure. It was the first sign that something was wrong. He was diagnosed with brain cancer and underwent surgery and chemotherapy. Wayne continued to have seizures for the next nine years while working as a transmission mechanic in Barrie and Orillia and whenever he had a seizure his driver’s licence was suspended for a while. For stability, Wayne decided to set up shop close to home so that he could walk or ride his bike to work during those times he could not drive. In 2011, he set up Creemore Automotive and Transmission at Country Sunshine, on County Road 9.
Wayne continued to have MRIs and in 2012, cysts were discovered on the brain. He had a second surgery and one week later he contracted bacterial meningitis. Kristen rushed him to the hospital with no time to spare. Afterwards, Wayne went to work with bandages on his head and an IV, carrying the bag of antibiotics in a backpack.
She said the nurses and home care workers would visit him at the shop, to take blood samples and change his IV, knowing he would not be home resting.
“He never let it get him down,” said Kristen.
An MRI found a few more spots on the brain in November and he started radiation treatment, which he had been hoping to avoid.
Even then, remembers Brookelyne, her father said to the doctors, “I can’t be here every day, I have a business to run”. He said, “I have a business, I have to live.”
Wayne never returned to work after that and he died on Jan. 10 at age 48.
It was Wayne’s wish that Kristen kept the business going after he died. She and her daughters, Brooklyne and Ashlyne, are managing the business, which has two mechanics on staff.
When Brookelyne heard a promotion for the Peak FM’s business of the week contest, she wrote in about her father’s perseverance. As a result, the staff at Creemore Automotive and Transmission will be treated to lunch this Friday.
