Everyday People: Corkill finds passion in cars

At 11 years old, Bryan Corkill became fascinated by mechanics. With an interest in fuel-powered model planes and radios, he fell in love with his first car in his early high school years, a 1958 Oldsmobile Super 88 two-door hardtop that his dad bought.

“The car was metallic blue. And I was in love with that car … when I was just about ready to get a driver’s license,” Corkill, now 80, said. “And somehow he entrusted me with the thing … I thought, ‘I want to lower this car in the front to make it look a little cool.’”

Bryan Corkill

Bryan Corkill has a car shop at his home in Knappa.

The Oldsmobile was the first car Corkill ever worked on, and from there, he went on to own and work on over 50, many from the shop in his Knappa backyard.

Corkill and his family lived on their grandparents’ dairy farm in Brownsmead. His grandparents bought the farm when they moved to Oregon from Canada after emigrating from Scotland.

Corkill said his father was hired to manage City Lumber in 1955 when his majority partners bought it out. He has been around the company ever since.

Corkill attended Clatsop Community College and Portland State University, after which he began working at Safeway. Corkill also spent six years in the Oregon National Guard in his 20s. He worked as a cook after a coworker in the guard mentioned there was a spot open for a mess cook.

“There was some advantages because when it was raining, you always had a roof over your head … It had three deadlines a day and you had to get it right. But the advantage was that you were always warm and dry,” he said.

After his service, he continued to work at City Lumber. He eventually moved into an assistant manager position.

Now semiretired, he still makes an effort to work part time during the week as a senior adviser.

Corkill continues to find new cars to work on. He is also part of the Lower Columbia Classics Car Club. He and Nora — his wife of 42 years — attend car shows in the region, and he says Nora is a good luck charm. That proved true again a few weekends ago.

He said that last year, his wife drove their blue Fiero and won an award, so he insisted she drive their red Fiero this year. Sure enough, she won again.

“She’s really lucky when it comes to that, whatever she touches, that’s the one that wins,” he said.

In recent years, Corkill and his wife have gotten involved in a yoga class through Clatsop Community College. Corkill even learned to do a headstand.

“It makes for something that I look forward to doing even though it’s hard work,” he said. “In the last five years, I noticed that I don’t do those things as well, because your muscle strength keeps disappearing whether you like it or not. But I can do pretty much all the yoga stuff. It’s a challenge.”