Bert Boeckmann | 84 | Chairman Galpin Motors, North Hills How many hours a week do you work? Currently I work 40 hours. I do that over six days. I work a half day Saturday morning, which is my time to review the week and put the next week in order. Why not retire? I’ve been with this company for over 60 years. You build up a huge amount of relationships in your community with friends, employees, people you meet in business situations, whether it be the (car) factories or other businesses. You realize that’s not something you want to divorce yourself from. It’s a life I enjoy. Has your wife Jane ever suggested you retire? No. She knows I enjoy it. She’s right here with me. What is the best part of working in your 80s? It is having something enjoyable to do every day. I have a job that I enjoy. The worst thing? Working every day. It is a love-hate relationship. When you come in there are a lot of wonderful people. Every once in a while you get somebody and think, “I’d just as soon not have met him.” Do you stay up to date with technology? Do you use email, a cell phone, or social media? All that came after I did. I use a cell phone but most of it is handled by the people who work for me. What advice do you have for people who want to work past 65? Be sure you like the job you are doing. That is really critical. Best advice you ever received? It came from my mother. She said, “Don’t let that one get away.” She was referring to (Jane). I had taken her to meet my mother when we first started going together. As I was going out the door, my mother pulled me to the side and that was her advice. Any secret to staying healthy and active? I have parents with great genes. Do you work as much as you did in your 40s and 50s? No. My typical day then was I would go into work at 8:30 in the morning and leave at 6:30 or 7 at night. That was a typical five days. Saturday was always been for review and catch up. I used to do that at work but there were so many people coming in that I found I couldn’t get through it because naturally I would talk with them if they wanted to see me. So I started doing Saturdays at home to do that work. How else has your work routine changed? The car business reminds me of my home at the beach. Your front yard on the beach changes every hour but the ocean is still the ocean. Things change daily whether it be things involved with the vehicles, the laws you’re living under. But the car business is still the car business. What do you miss about being young? Everything. There is nothing as great as when you’re young and do whatever you want when you want to do it. What do you see for your future? I don’t really see retirement. My wife and I have done quite a bit of travel in our lives, especially with the factories and businesses in other parts of the world. If there is something we want to do, we do it. We have a large family that takes up a lot of time and is a wonderful time consumer. – Mark R. Madler