Background: Ron is a lifelong local resident and makes his home in Kelso. He is retired from the Longview Switching Co., which was owned by Burlington Northern Railroad.

His wheels: A 1968 Cadillac DeVille convertible he found and bought in 1996.

“I was going to a funeral, actually, and it was at a Mormon Church going toward Castle Rock on the frontage road.”

The car was parked on the hill, with a for sale sign propped on it.

It immediately caught Ron’s eye.

“I just like old cars, and this appeared to be an older car,” he said. “I’m also partial to Fords and Cadillacs.”

He has done little to the car since he purchased it.

“It’s just the way it was when I looked at it,” he said. “It’s the same color and everything. I haven’t done anything to it except put those white-walled tires on it.”

The tires make the wheels stand out, but are sometimes a pain, Ron said.

“I very seldom hit a curb until I got the white walls. Now I can’t go near a curb without hitting it,” he said.

The vehicle makes a great addition to his stable of old cars, including a 1958 Edsel, a 1931 Model A Ford coupe and a 1949 Cadillac Fleetwood.

Over the years, Ron said he’s replaced parts such as starters, generators and the battery. He said he eventually would like to get it repainted in the same rich burgundy.

But the vehicle doesn’t get that much use, he noted.

“I drive it around a lot in the summertime,” he said. “Of course, it sits in the garage in the wintertime. It’s got a nice top. It doesn’t leak or anything, but it’s just not a winter car.”

When he takes it out, though, people seem to notice the vehicle.

“I get a lot of thumbs up, nice car,” he said. “It’s a show-off car.”

Other recent People and Their Wheels features:

Theron and Cindy Osborne's 1959 Pontiac Bonneville

Rodger Leak's 1967 E Type Jaguar

Jason Elliott's 1980 Cadillac Coupe de Ville

Olen Wallis' 1969 Buick Skylark

Larry and Alice Richter's 1969 Corvette convertible

Mike Nesbit's 2004 Chevrolet SSR