FOCUS - JUNE 2019 3 ...................... Please turn to page 4 So I’m watching the Focus photographer take pictures of Paul Flieler at the gas pumps outside of his Ultramar station in Port Perry, and I hear all of these car horns honking. At first I wonder what it’s all about? Turns out that it’s just passersby greeting Paul, a popular local guy who has provided top- notch service with a smile for some 44 years. The Simcoe St. business offers full auto mechanic ser- vice and a little store. You can go there to get your tires changed, your vehicle repaired or your tank filled, plus stock up on road trip snacks ranging from beef jerky to bridge mix. And don’t forget the fresh brewed coffee. No doubt the regular customers who have become friends, will miss Paul and his wife Gisele following their well-earned retirement on June 28. Romance bloomed at the gas pumps when Gisele asked Paul if he had any boxes for moving, and they struck up a conversation. A nurse, Gisele still supports Port Perry Hospital today by volunteering at Camille’s Closet on Mary St. It was “a rough start” getting the business off the ground, but over the years, it turned out to be lucrative thanks to tires and auto repairs, Paul said. Today, if a customer purchases $50 worth of gas with a credit card, which has a charge, the commission is only $1.29! Some 40 years ago, the profit was ten cents on the dollar. Paul’s dad owned a service station in Ajax. “We were brought up in a gas station like some kids grow up on a farm,” he commented. When a third shift was added at the North American Rockwell Steel Factory in Oshawa where Paul was employed as a young man, he didn’t want to work mid- nights, so he changed paths and took over the Simcoe St. gas station which his father had purchased as an invest- ment. It was a big leap, he says, since the steel factory “paid good wages, like GM.” But he took the leap of faith. The second year he was in business, Simcoe St. was closed for reconstruction. Luckily, with his father as his landlord, Paul did not have to pay rent during this time, since he had no business. This also happened a second time during his career. For about 15 years, Flieler’s has sold Ultramar Gas. Previously it was Petro Canada, before that it was BP, and originally, North End Supertest established by Henry and Jessie Slater some 50 years ago. ThebuildingwasdesignedandbuiltbytheHutchinson family, meant to be a small used car lot, but that plan never materialized. At one time, it was a restaurant. Paul has kept many historic photos of the evolution of the business on this site, including a postcard from a single mom, “which brought tears to his eyes.” She wrote IT’S BEEN A GAS! Paul and Gisele about to retire! FLIELER The engaging smiles of Paul, Gisele and Cam Flieler behind the counter.