16 | SEPTEMBER 15 • 2022 

ANTIQUE 
PANEL TRUCK
Rachel Monahan wrote to 
us about an antique panel 
truck restoration project that 
is itself an act of love. “My 
grandfather is Milt Weinger. 
My husband, Tim, and I 
tracked down my great-
grandfather’s grocery van. It 
is a 1950 Chevy Panel Van 
that my grandfather, who 
is now 96, used to drive for 
deliveries for his father Bill’s 
grocery store when he was 
younger.” (See the William 
Davidson Digital Archive of 
Jewish Detroit History for 
1940s advertisements for Bill 
Weinger’s Fine Food Shoppe 
on Seven Mile Road).
“We are working to 
restore the van back to how 
it looked in the 1950s,” she 
continued. “Grandfather 

was so happy to see it again! 
However, he was upset that 
it no longer had the family 
name on it. We promised 
we would repaint it in the 
original color with the same 
writing that it once had for 
‘Weinger’s.’”
The most intriguing part 
of this saga is how Rachel 
and Tim played sleuths like 
Sherlock Holmes to track 
down the van. Rachel tells 
the story: “The abandoned 
van was found in a field and 
ended up in the hands of a 
man in Indiana. This man 
sent my grandfather a letter 
about the van a few decades 
ago.
“When my husband and I 
heard about this a few years 
ago, we worked to track 
this guy down, hoping that 
he still had the van,” she 
continued. “We kept in touch 

over the years hoping that, 
one day, he would sell it to 
us. He ended up selling it to 
someone else forgetting that 
we wanted it. We were able 
to contact the new owner, 
and he sold it to us. It was so 

exciting bringing it 
home, back into the 
family.” 
We at the JN 
hope that Rachel 
and Tim will send 
us a photo of the 
final restoration of 
grandfather’s panel 
van.
Car culture is alive and 
well in Detroit’s Jewish 
community. The JN would 
like to thank everyone for 
sharing their car stories with 
us. 

OUR COMMUNITY
continued from page 15

Rachel and Tim Monahan 
with Grandfather Milt 
Weinger and their 1950 
Chevy panel van.

The original condition 
of the delivery van

Supported through the generosity of The Jewish Fund and the D. Dan and Betty Kahn Family Foundation.

.org
We Have Answers.

 
 
 
Need help finding 
senior care? 

 
Call jhelp at 1-833-44-JHELP

 
Visit jhelp.org

 
Chat online with a staff 
member or schedule a 
 
call at jhelp.org

 
Do all of the above
✗

Q

