TRAINER — After 70 years in the junkyard and auto business, the Kerezsi brothers, owners of Lou’s Auto Service Inc. at 3507 W. Ninth St. in Trainer have decided that it’s time to hang up their wrenches, close their doors, and call it a day.
Brothers Lou, Jimmy and Tom, along with their late brother David, worked there with their late father, Lou Sr., from when they were knee-high, but the owners decided to close this year, for a variety of reasons. Feb. 3 will be their final day.
Louis Kerezsi Sr. opened Lou’s Auto Service in 1954.
After he passed away in 1983, his four sons took over the family-owned and operated business and helped to continue his legacy for the next 40 years, making the name Kerezsi synonymous with cars in Delaware County and beyond.
Last summer, David “Skeeter” Kerezsi passed away.
The loss of their brother and partner profoundly impacted the lives of the remaining brothers and the way that they viewed the business, serving as a poignant and stark reminder of life’s brevity. To honor Skeeter’s memory and embrace living life to the fullest, the three brothers have made the difficult decision to retire and close the family business.
“All four of us brothers worked in this business, side by side,” Jimmy Kerezsi shared. “Skeeter’s passing last year really put a damper on everything and was a wake-up call to us. We don’t want to work until the day that we die, like he did. Plus, without him, things are just not the same. My brothers and I always said that we’d only sell if all four of us wanted to sell.”
“We considered selling during COVID, but not all of us were ready,” Tom added. “But after Skeeter died, we unanimously, 100% across the board, felt it was the right time to sell. The writing was on the wall, between COVID, internet sales and not many people working on their own cars anymore.”
In addition to the loss of their brother in 2023, the brothers said changes in the business itself, especially with the progression of technology, significantly factored into their decision to close.
“People just don’t work on cars like they used to, and if they do, they usually just order the parts they need on the internet,” Jimmy shared. “Fathers and sons coming in for parts, working together fixing cars, used to be the common thing, but we just don’t see that anymore. It seems like it’s a thing of the past.
“Car owners usually get rid of the old and move onto the new, these days. Few people take the time to learn and fix their cars themselves. And most cars are sophisticated and computerized now and we don’t have that kind of equipment at our place to fix the newer cars. We usually have to refer customers to someone who does. Since the pandemic in 2020, after things slowed down, we’ve only been open four days a week.”
“We know it’s time for us to go,” Lou Jr. commented. “Losing Skeeter really made us sure of our decision to let go of the business.”
‘Made our dad proud’
Although the brothers are at peace with selling, they admit leaving this chapter of their lives behind is bittersweet.
“All we’ve ever known was this business,” Jimmy shared, as he choked up, showing photos of his late father and brother. “One thing I can say for sure is I know that we made our dad proud. But we’re all ready to move on and excited to see what’s next in life for us.”
Lou Sr. and Patricia Kerezsi raised their four sons and daughter, Patricia, in Aston Township. Lou Jr., Jimmy and David attended St. James High School and Tom went to Cardinal O’Hara High School. Currently, Jimmy lives in Aston and Lou Jr. and Tom live in West Chester.
“Everything that we did and have in our lives is because of this business,” Jimmy said.
Jimmy was only 22 when Lou Sr. passed away, so he only had the opportunity to work with his dad for about four years.
“We all made a good living here and supported our families,” Jimmy stated. “It’s really hard to sell a family business. You become a part of it in so many ways.”
The brothers said they have too many favorite memories of their days in the family business to name only a few.
“When we brothers get together, we always share stories and laughs,” Jimmy said, chuckling. “Our wives just roll their eyes because they’ve heard the same stories a million times!”
Expanding and contracting
Customers came to Lou’s Auto Service from all over the tri-state area for auto repairs and service, inspections, to sell vehicles in any condition for scrapping and to purchase used auto parts. Their father purchased Casey’s Beer Distributor next door to the company in the mid-1970s, kept it for a year, and then expanded Lou’s Auto Service into the building, giving it more room to grow.
In addition to Lou’s, the brothers also owned an auto parts business on Fourth Street as well as Joe’s Junk Yard at 3305 Ninth St., a scrap and parts business that was founded by their uncle Joe Kerezsi, and later was sold to them by their cousin.
They sold Joe’s Junkyard in 2021 and their Fourth Street business was sold in 2023.
The brothers expressed a special appreciation to all of their past and current employees. In the company’s heyday, the three businesses had about 15 employees.
“We were lucky to have some of the best employees who became family to us. Their hard work loyalty, blood, sweat and tears did not go unnoticed over the years,” Jimmy stated. “I hope they know how grateful we are. We couldn’t have done all we did without them.”
They sold the final remaining business location of Lou’s Auto Service in December 2023 and were given 60 days to vacate. Even in these last days of January, the brothers are servicing customers’ vehicles.
“Even though we will officially close on Feb. 3, we’ll be here until the end of February to finish selling the place’s contents and cleaning out the offices and the rest of the building,” Jimmy said.
The brothers shared that a limousine company purchased Lou’s Auto Service, a concrete recycling company bought Joe’s Junkyard and a developer purchased their Fourth Street location.
Many well-wishers
Since announcing the closing of Lou’s Auto Service on social media and with a banner out front, the brothers said that they’ve heard from hundreds of the customers who they’ve served through the years. Being recipients of so many good wishes, and getting warm, positive responses, has helped the Kerezsi family, as they go through this life-changing transition.
“People have been calling, texting, stopping by and posting comments on our Facebook page,” Jimmy stated. “Some people are third-generation customers. We have felt really good, knowing we served the community well. Our dad’s name is on this business so that pushed my brothers and me to honor his legacy with honesty and integrity through the years. Just working under my dad’s name made all of us give a little extra and push a little harder every day.”
Tom doesn’t plan to retire like his older brothers, but rather to go in another career direction after the business closes.
As the youngest brother, he says that he was only 12 when his father passed away. He has worked at Lou’s for 35 years. Tom remarked that he’s leaving with many fond memories and feeling very proud of the way that the brothers grew the business and all the customers that they helped along the way.
His best memory will be remembering how the brothers did it all together, working every step of the way in unison.
“Working together as family is one of the greatest things any of us has ever accomplished,” Tom said. “We have a strong bond as brothers and we’ve worked really well together all these years.”
Lou and Jimmy shook their heads in agreement, and added how they’re also grateful for all the good people whom they’ve met through the years, saying how much they’ll miss their dedicated customers.
“To all of the customers and scrap enthusiasts who rolled through our gates over the years, we tip our greasy hats in sincere appreciation,” their “Lou’s Auto Service” Facebook page proclaims. “Thank you for helping to make our business a community staple and for the camaraderie that came with it. It has been a wild ride, and we couldn’t have done it without you.”
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