MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY – SHAWN NICHOLSON
MICHAEL L. BOKOVOY DISCUSSES HIS CAREER AS A PRODUCTION WORKER AND UAW MEMBER AT THE FISHER BODY PLANT IN LANSING, MI


Cheryl McQuaid:	This is the Fisher Body Historical Team. Today is Monday, February 27, 2006. It's approximately 12:30 p.m. We're preparing to interview Mike Bokovoy. First, let's introduce the team.

John Fedewa:	John Fedewa. 

Gary Judy:	Gary Judy.

Earl Nicholson:	Earl Nicholson.

Jerri Smith:	Jerry Smith.

Cheryl McQuaid:	And this is Cheryl McQuaid. [0:24] Mike, would you please state your name and spell it for us, please?

Michael Bokovoy:	It's, uh, Mike Bokovoy – M-I-K-E B-O-K-O-V-O-Y.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[0:34] And could you tell us what your address is?

Michael Bokovoy:	3616 West Saint Joseph’s Street, Lansing, Michigan.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[0:43] And are you married? [0:43] Do you have children?

Michael Bokovoy:	Yes, I am. I'm, um, married. Um, I have 3 of my own and 1 stepson, um, ranges in age from 32 to 23. 

Cheryl McQuaid:	[0:57] And could you tell us a little bit about your education? [1:00] Where did you go to school, if you’ve been to college?

Michael Bokovoy:	I graduated from high school, Waverly, in, in the year 1974. I had 2 years of college. I have 2-1/2 years of college at Lansing Community and then I didn’t finish.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[1:20] Eh, where were you born?

Michael Bokovoy:	Lansing, Michigan, at Sparrow Hospital.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[1:25] And what did your parents do?

Michael Bokovoy:	Uh, my mom was a housewife and my father was factory. He worked at Fisher Body also.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[1:37] What did you do before you hired in to Fisher Body? [1:40] Did you just get out of college or…?

Michael Bokovoy:	[When outta 1:42] high school, [tsk] I went into, uh – I was a wrestling coach up North and then I went and I was a ASE Certified Mechanic at a garage and then I wanted to better myself, [thumping throughout audio] so I went in and hired in at GM.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[1:59] What brought you to GM?

Michael Bokovoy:	Well basically the life that I saw it gave my grandfather and my dad I guess and, uh – I don’t know – probably the money and the hours, you know. A lotta my friends were going in, so [background conversation throughout audio] I kinda seen what they were doing, so and I took a chance at it. [engine humming throughout audio]

Cheryl McQuaid:	[2:19] Do you remember what your grandfather did in the plant?

Michael Bokovoy:	Yep. He was a material sorter. He was a – I don’t know. He put in about – almost 32 years. His name was Mike also. But he, uh, he didn’t like to talk a lot about what he did. I mean even at home. I mean he made [even if it was a big garden area 2:34] or whatever but the only thing I ever got out of him was he took and he told me about chucking leather before [inaudible 2:43] insect bites or if he had any barbwire marks or stuff like that where they used to make [inaudible  2:49] and when he chucked in leather palates and stuff. That's about the only thing I really got out of him about it and then, of course, my dad worked in Material too, so.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[3:00] And did you get any stories from your father about [inaudible 3:02]?

Michael Bokovoy:	Oh, there’s quite a few [laughter] from my dad. [laughter] I mean I could probably talk a ton about it. I do know what he told me the first job he had and it was kinda funny. He hired in on a, on a Valentine’s Day. I think it was in 1946 I think. And he told me his first job was he had to grab a rope. He had to pull a job up a incline and after it got up to the top, he had to put a door [inaudible 3:23] on it and that was every, every job. And the only reason why he came in here was because of my grandpa forced him, finally told’m well, if you're not gonna go to college or whatever, you gotta couple weeks to get a job and so the next thing you know, of course, my dad didn’t get a job or he didn’t go to school, so the next thing you know, he’s hired in the shop, [laughter] so. [background conversation] 

	That’s basically how that happened and then, uh, [background conversation] well I don’t know. I guess it was probably about ’65 or something like that [clanking throughout audio] when grandpa went out and then my dad [banging] retired in ’81, so I don’t know. I guess you add it all up, it was almost 35 [clinking throughout audio] years for him. So then I came in in ’76, [tapping] which I'm still here now. Um, but I put in all my time [squeaking] in Body Shop, so. But I, of course, I seen my dad. I used to work – I worked for him a couple a times. That was fun. [laughter] That was real fun. But then he, uh, he did miscellaneous jobs. He was, um, anywhere from a, a laborer, I guess, in Material to, uh, being a foreman to being a superintendent to back to being a, a salvage coordinator, I think, [squeaking] is what his job was last one [inaudible 4:34]. [banging]

Cheryl McQuaid:	[4:36] How old were you when you hired in?

Michael Bokovoy:	I was 19, just gonna turn 20. I was on the ends – end of 19. 

Cheryl McQuaid:	[4:47] Do you remember the whole hiring process. [4:49] Do you…

Michael Bokovoy:	Oh, oh, yeah.

Cheryl McQuaid:	…think your father helped you get a job there?

Michael Bokovoy:	Well at first he told me when I first, um, got the application – I bugged’m for a little while about it because, uh, like I said, some of my friends went in and then he goes well, I don’t really know’m, I don’t really know’m and then he brought me home a – it was a card is what it was and you filled it all out and went in and, heck, it wasn’t even 2 days and I got a call. And, um, I remember the interview really well. The guy was [Jerry Brooks 5:16] [tsk] and it was, uh, upstairs in back of the cafeteria where we used to have our [team room 5:23] in there for EPG, Employee Involvement, and, um, [inaudible 5:27]. They went through an orientation. They told ya you had to have boots, you had to have, uh, that they had to be leather boots and [inaudible] [you want 5:36] and then side shields and all that type a deal and coveralls. 

	It was kind of a quick process and then as soon as they got all done, he wanted to know [laughter] if you wanted to go to work right away. But I didn’t go right in because I liked my boss where I was at, so I gave’m a couple weeks’ notice. And I was supposed to hire in in, um, cushion room and that was days cushion room and I told’m I couldn't do it, so they put me in on nights [tsk] in Body Shop, so I was working over at the gas station being a mechanic during the day and then I was going in at Fisher Body [whistling] at nights [laughter] and I did that for about 3-1/2 months. And, um, of course, the next thing you know, we had all these [throat clearing] Saturdays and, uh, the 9-4’s and 10-3’s and all that type a deal and, uh, then I just – uh, I couldn't handle it anymore. He – my other boss, he wouldn't find anybody, so I finally just said, uh, I had to go, so I got, [laughter] I gotta go. I gotta get some rest and stuff like that.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[6:33] Do you remember the first day that you walked in there and they took you to the Body Shop?

Michael Bokovoy:	Yeah, I do. I still remember the guy’s name too. His name was, um – I think it was Tom Lee and he was a pretty big – he was kinda – I think he was a general foreman back then, I think was – I know his last name was Lee. And he took me down through the Body Shop and I mean there was, um, conveyors all up in the air. They were all over the place. And everything was really tight and it was dirty and it was smoky. It was hot. And I'm like – the very first thing I'm saying to myself – of course, I'm only, you know, [being 7:05] almost 20 years old and I was walking through there and I used to always work outside being, you know, a mechanic and I was always an outside guy and I was like aw, my God, man, what did I get myself into here. [laughter] And he’s walking me from department to department and I know [throat clearing] we talked to probably about 3 different people. And I don’t really under-, I couldn't understand that. I guess in today’s world, if they had an extra body, man, they'd latch right onto ya in a minute. But, uh, back then, I just kept going. 

	And then I ended up going in, um, in underbody and I stayed in underbody for a long time. My first boss was, uh, was Mike [Myers 7:39] and Joe [Shane 7:41]. And, uh, Joe [Shane 7:43], he ended up eventually being a, [rubbing] a general foreman throughout the years, you know, and stuff but I worked for Joe in a lotta different aspects, you know, when he was a first line boss and then all the way up. I stayed in underbody for quite a while. Um, I remember the first job I w-, had too. Um, it was, uh, welding a – the trunk and the floor pan together. It's what we used to call a kick-up weld. You used to have to weld your half plus weld the seat back on, which held the backseat in, and then you had to put a filler on and what it did is it went to the underbody on the rear pan that closed into the side frame and you had to seal that and seal around the back side and that was on the 88s and 98s and then, uh, if there was a Toronado coming in, you had to really hurry to catch the Toronado. [laughter] 

	And, uh, that had about, um, 3 spot welders and a MIG welder on it, which a MIG welder is like arc welding and, um, you used to have arc weld, um, [tsk] a seat bracket down on the floor pan and then you had to put the seat back on and you also had this great big spot welder that welded the front cowl area to the floor pan and that can – it seemed like – and every, every single Toronado job was hot. I mean they were just – the steel was huge and, uh, it was, it was tough. It was real tough. And then, um, [tsk] after you got rid of the Toronado, you had to hurry up 'cause you had an 88 or 98 behind it. So you either had to work hard to get to the Toronado and then work hard after you got back to get to the 88 or 98 afterwards. I can't remember how many an hour. I gotta th-, I gotta try to remember. I think it was maybe about 36 an hour but still when you had about 4 spot welders on a job plus sealer and stuff, you were moving pretty good. You were moving pretty good.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[9:32] So did you consider it a physical job?

Michael Bokovoy:	Yeah. It was, uh, it was, um, [tsk] it was hot. [papers rustling] You had to be, um – you had to up and down b-, on the [buns 9:41] on these spot welders. You had to open and [papers rustling] close and then you had high heat and low heat trigger, um, location. And it seemed like every spot welder too on a Toronado was always about 6 times the size of the ones for the 88 and 98. I don’t know if it was an ergonomic thing or whatever. I mean, no, actually – no I can't even say ergonomics because there wasn’t any ergonomics back then but, um, maybe it was just, uh, the way they could get it in to do the welding I guess. I don’t know. But they were huge. And you had - [part of them 10:13] you had to really manhandle’m and stuff to get’m around. Um, you didn’t have to build a million Toronados, thank God, but, uh, I tell ya, it was, um – back in the ole Body Shop days, it was really smoky. [tapping] You could come in. You just seen a haze up in the air and, you knew, right then and there there wasn’t any air for the night, so it was gonna be hot the more as your time got in. 

	And then, uh, like I said, I don’t know. I worked on, um, [tsk] I worked on the line for – I don’t know – it wasn’t even thr-, it wasn’t even 3 months. I didn’t have my 90 days in and I went on Utility and I worked Utility for a long, long time. Um, it was kind of an undesirable job. And I actually got bumped to days and outta my 30 years, I didn’t work very much nights. Um, a guy bumped me off Utility on nights and it bumped me to days. And I think maybe I had a couple, three stents of nights. But, uh, it was – just wasn’t a job, uh, that people liked to do because when somebody didn’t come in or if they had a vacation day or if they got hurt or whatever. But, um, you [just so 11:18] kinda like an extra [board 11:19] person and I liked it because I h-, then I didn’t hafta do the same job every day. That’s what I – I really did. I liked that. Then I went on and, um, [tsk] let's see. I did, uh – [gutturals] let's see. I went from the Utility to, uh, Relief. I used to run Relief until they went to mass relief. Then I went into, um – I did, I did, uh, Relief, eh, eh, quite a while before I became a team coordinator. And I was a team coordinator for about 7 years [before 11:50], uh, Delta plant. 

Cheryl McQuaid:	[11:52] Do you remember some of the people that you worked around when you first hired in?

Michael Bokovoy:	Yeah. [And I still do 11:55].

Cheryl McQuaid:	[11:56] And who taught you the job?

Michael Bokovoy:	Um, [tsk] [it wasn’t] [inaudible 12:01] man. It was usually an extra guy. The [inaudible 12:05] man was – that was his job, was just to be around for emergency purposes. They, they didn’t [work then 12:10]. They just, they never did. You know, it was just something that happened and I don’t know. It was total different than what it is now. Um, but I remember – but it didn’t take me very long either to learn a job. Everybody kept telling me I had 3 days to learn a job but it didn’t take me that long. And, uh, once they knew you were halfway decent – I don’t know – it just seems like everything was kinda pushed through a little bit. 

	Um, but, s-, and still know the guy today that was across from me. His name was Dan McDonald. He lives up in Ionia and, uh, he’s been retired now for probably about 9 years, [throat clearing] 9 years. The guy I'm working with still is Terry [Soucier 12:51]. He was the Utility guy when I was – when I hired in on the job. He’s gotta – they had him on Utility and – because he only had about 2 weeks on me, so they were apparently looking for Utility people, somebody that knew how to [background noises] run a lotta jobs. And then, um, [tsk] w-, I remember John [Willie 13:08], Frank [Ash 13:09]. John [Willie 13:11] was the [inaudible 13:11 ] man. Frank [Cash 13:12] was the late relief man. Oh gosh, a ton of guys. [Bancroft 13:16]. I mean, I, I remember a lotta them guys 'cause I worked for’m – with’m for years. 

Cheryl McQuaid:	[13:22] Was it…

Michael Bokovoy:	So…

Cheryl McQuaid:	…hard to communicate with’m? I've always heard the Body Shop was a noisy place to work.

Michael Bokovoy:	It was loud but you just spoke up. Sometimes you had to repeat yourself. Um, everything was, um – it was loud because it was all packed. It was really packed and it was, um, crowded, dirty and hot. That’s about all I can say and, uh, you look forward to that every day. I mean that’s just the way it was. There was so much sealer and there was also lead paint and everything else but there was always so much sealer on a job that, uh, if you didn’t throw Floor-Dry down, your feet got so heavy by lunchtime that, uh, and you couldn't stand it anymore. It just filled the whole bottom of your feet up. So you put [coughing] Floor-Dry down and it kinda ate it off your feet and then it would just not stick to it and then the next thing you know, you can move around [inaudible 14:10].

Cheryl McQuaid:	[14:10] Ate what off your feet?

Michael Bokovoy:	The sealer. Well what it was called, it was called red eye and I'll tell you that stuff was un-, amazing. [scratching] I found it in my apartment one time sitting on a – I was on – sitting on the couch and I looked down and it was on my carpet and I always took my shoes off. But that was just how that stuff [inaudible 14:25]. You got it on ya, it was on your lunch. It was in – it w-, it was just – it was all over ya. It was a red sealer that you put and it just – it was a common [use] [inaudible 14:35] back then and, uh, man, I don’t know. It just would get all over ya. [coughing] I guess it was almost like [inaudible 14:41] up in Paint that was in, you know, Lansing Car Assembly before we left.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[14:46] So it was kinda like a putty-type stuff?

Michael Bokovoy:	Yeah. Well best I can say is it kinda looked like, uh, like a red stuff that you would caulk out of a gun and what I – it kinda had an oily [scratching] substance to it. That – they nicknamed her red eye and that was just what it was. It was a nasty [laughter] stuff. [laughter] It was terrible.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[15:06] Now did you work in the jungle?

Michael Bokovoy:	[tsk] I worked all over. At one time, [tsk] um, [tsk] I – I don’t know if I should really brag this up or what. I don’t know. Everybody’s tellin’ me about it 'cause there wasn’t too many guys that could do it. But I at one time on the, um, Cutlass line, 88, 98, Toronado line, I knew every single job in both body shops [tsk] and except for solder. I didn’t go into solder booths very much. I'd only – I only went in a few times grinding and finishing and I’d never really worked the torch and flowed all the solder in and stuff like that but, uh, 'cause that was an art. That was one heck of an art. There was a lotta guys that were in there that, uh, really had – you had to know what you were doing because some – on some of them jobs, especially the Toronado would be coming and then if there was a 98 coming behind it, they had a great big – it was – what they called it was a [quarter] [inaudible 16:00] and if it didn’t have a vinyl top, which back then the [option 16:03] was [CO4] [inaudible 16:04]. 

	They had solder and it would take [throat clearing] 2 solder pots to fill that up, not just 1 like an 88 would or whatever or doing a front post would only take maybe about half a pot. So you'd hafta kinda look up the line and then you'd have to have someone help you because you'd have to put all the solder rods in and it, it was a, it was a job to learn. And, eh, and I never really got in there. I mean I did it a little bit with a guy one time and then the guy come in late and then I kinda went down [there 16:34] and [then I 16:35] was just like a grinder and a sander on it but you used to hafta wear a hood in there and then they used to monitor ya. Well they said they monitored you but, um, it wasn’t a, a whole lot but they would monitor you for lead content. You'd go down and get your blood taken and if you were [inaudible 16:52] to it too much, then you had too much lead inside your blood and you then you kinda had to go to another job for a while until it kinda went away from ya. And no women were allowed in there. 

	But, uh, that was a, [background noise] that was a heck of an area there. I don’t know. There were just certain people [background conversation] that they had that went in there. Um, I, like I said, I started on the body. I, I worked a lot in, uh – what were they called – um, body framing back then was where the 2 side frames came in. I worked in side frames. And then they welded the body together and then they went into a jungle area. And the reason why they called it a jungle was because there were so many cables hanging that, uh, it just remind you of being in a jungle, like a whole buncha vines and they were all attached to welders anywhere from, uh, C-Mars to gusset welders to, [tsk] uh, door openings, rollers. I mean there was – it was unbelievable. There m-, there musta been s-, man, I don’t know. I gotta say 60 probably or s-, or more welders on each side of the line, so you could imagine with all the transformers hanging in the air and all on cables and balancers and guns. It was a big, big area. 

	And then I went into the arc booth and that’s where they did brazing [tsk] and then, uh, did a buncha arc welding inside of the job and, and long spots where, uh, um, they didn’t pick up where spotwelds or whatever or they couldn't get a gun in. There was a whole buncha MIG welds. Um, that kind of eventually went away as we started building different cars but there was a period of time where arc booth was a pretty big area. There must've been about [7 18:28] guys on each side welding. And, uh, of course, the dash job. That was a, a, a MIG weld job where you u-, had to put in a steering column and the radio bracket. I can still remember that job. That was a hot job, a hot, fast job. You used to get burned up all the time, um, sparks flying and you used to have to wear a weld hat and weld gloves or you'd end up getting pretty well scorched on that. Body Shop was just a – it was a – [tsk] I don’t know. To stay there for 30 years, it's a – it's something. It really is. Um, some people, just they'd be down there for a few years and they just couldn't handle it…

Male:	Yeah.

Michael Bokovoy:	…and they just says I'm outta here and, uh, they were gonna – either go to Paint or they were going to Trim or something. But I liked it. Heck, especially since I could be on days. I mean I seen so many people on and going back and forth from nights to days in different areas and I said heck, I can put up with Body Shop as long as I can keep up a normal life, you know, and not have to go in at 4:30 in the afternoon. I mean that there, I hated that with a passion. [laughter] Uh, that just – that wasn’t my scene but, um. Let's see. Then, uh, then I went to [throat clearing] metal finish. I did a lotta work in metal finish. Uh, later on in my life, um, I went in and I used to run the repair awl and, uh, then I run a lotta ding work up in, [coughing] uh, Paint and a lotta, um, uh – well I was pre-, uh, pre-ding and stuff like that was when, um, it was [inaudible 19:58] and, um, I did all that. And then also I did, like I say, the ding work and we tried to, um, if there was any kind of thing, we [inaudible 20:06] so we didn’t break [paint 20:07] and that was up in Paint Repair. And I worked a lotta changeovers too. Worked a lotta changeovers.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[20:15] When, uh, you worked – when you hired in in ’76, were there many women or minorities working…

Michael Bokovoy:	No.

Cheryl McQuaid:	…around you?

Michael Bokovoy:	There wasn’t. There was a, there was a few minorities. [tsk] Um, John [Willie 20:26] was one and so was Frank [Ash 20:29]. Uh, and there was a couple a Utility guys I remember and then, of course, they were spread out different places too, you know. And it took me a little while to get to know really basically where I was at and then I kinda after I went on Utility, then I ventured out and then that’s when I really started meeting a lotta different people. But, um, women-wise, [tsk] my wife came in before I did in ’76 and she was in a batch of women that, um, was in that, uh, pre-women’s lib thing and, um – see Body Shop didn’t hire a lotta women personally because they had jobs that was undesirable, number one and then number two, they had health restrictions if they were in baby years or whatever and so General Motors and, and [they had 21:20] the UAW probably, you know, they kept’m outta there so that, you know, they didn’t get sick. 

	But she came in a batch, I th-, I'm trying to remember what the magic number was but there was 12 or 13 of'm. And they came in and they were in, um, before some guys came in and, uh, she lasted all 30 in there in the Body Shop and, um, and [I’d seen so much Delta 21:44] that were in her group and think there’s still 5 or 6 of'm. So that means that there was – there's probably 7 of the original 12 or 13 that stayed 30 years in Body Shop. That’s very, very amazing. That's really amazing. Just 30 years is tough in it for a man in Body Shop, let alone a woman.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[22:06] So you met your wife in the plant?

Michael Bokovoy:	Yeah. Yeah. I met her. Matter a fact, she worked in underbody, so I – let's see, uh, 30 years. I bet I probably have known her for about 26, probably 26 or 27 of the 30. 

Cheryl McQuaid:	[22:23] How did you meet her?

Michael Bokovoy:	Uh, she was a, [sighing] she was a line worker and we just all talked to each other [when we were in 22:30] department. It was just the way it was. It made the day go. Everybody’s talking about this and that or they're gonna go fishing or hunting and, and I don’t know. She just was a talkative person and so basically we just – I don’t know. We'd meet. I mean it just was the way it was. And when you go on a job if she was across from me, you know, you talk to her and that type a deal.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[22:53] Was it hard having a romance in the plant?

Michael Bokovoy:	Uh, [laughter] I don’t know if you – I don’t think [background noise] you'd call it a romance. Um, basically what we considered each other was coworkers. That was just the way it was. We did our gig after work. If we were gonna go have a drink or something after work and that’s what we did or whatever. When we hired in, [throat clearing] it was basically hi, bye and whatever. I'd drop her off out front and, and then I'd go around and I'd go to my area and that’s the way it was. Um, I don’t remember it ever really being too tough. I, I was pretty busy. She was pretty busy. And she did her gig and I did mine until after we got out. 

Cheryl McQuaid:	Eh, earlier you said that you knew just about all the jobs on the M line and the C line…

Michael Bokovoy:	Eh, yeah.

Cheryl McQuaid:	…in the Body Shop. [23:47] Was it easy for you to learn all these jobs? [23:49] Was it easy for everybody to learn these jobs? 

Michael Bokovoy:	Um, no, I can't say it was easy. But I saw a benefit to me because I can remember a couple times when I would go to get shipped out to an area and if they were really short and had other guys coming, they knew I knew how to run Relief if that was open, then I could get it. Most type a jobs, if you could get just that extra 15-20 minutes during the day, it was cherished, so I saw a benefit for me doing it. I don’t think there was really anything easy about it. It was, uh, more or less paying attention to what was going on and willing to do it. There was guys [inaudible 27:26] Utility that were terrible. [laughter] I mean that was just [laughter] bottom line. They were just terrible. 

	Um, they just existed and, uh, they, uh – management really, really worked around a lot of them guys. Some of'm they just, um, they treated everybody different. If they called and somebody was [extra 24:43], they'd ask if, um – say, uh, like Tom is a, a good one too. They'd ask if Tom was busy or if I was busy or whatever and then the other ones, they, they, they would tell'm to forget it; we’ll get somebody [laughter] else 'cause they [inaudible 24:56]. [throat clearing] But that – it wasn’t a lie. You know? But I'm just saying. But it was, um, [tsk] it was a task to learn’m and it was just a pr-, just know just a process or whatever. A lot of'm kind of mirrored each other if you really thought about it, you know. You just kinda collated them together and the next thing you know, that's the way it was, so.

Cheryl McQuaid:	You also said earlier that you didn’t spend much time on second shift; most of your time was spent on the dayshift. [25:24] Are there any big differences between dayshift and nightshift? [25:30] What are the differences?

Michael Bokovoy:	Uh, family, number one. It just seemed like, um, family life really, really revolves after 4 or so or 5 at night. I mean it just – that’s just the way society is. [coughing] Excuse me. I don’t really know if that’s as much of a case now as it was back when I was younger and trying [tapping] to raise a family. Um, and another thing was, um, y-, your social life or, or any type of anything. I mean like I'm a really big part of service organization now and helping, uh, stuff. There is a few clubs now they have what they call a daytime places, you know, like breakfast club or whatever for lines but it was just society run when you got outta the – your shift and things really started happening and that just – that’s the way society was. Uh, me, when I went in, of course, I couldn't play softball. I was a real athletic guy and when I was on nights I couldn't do that. 

	Um, all my friends that were going here and there, um, I was sorta [inaudible 26:34] engaged to my first wife at the time so, of course, you know, she’d be coming home offa work and I'd be going down Michigan Avenue headed to Fisher Body. That, of course, didn’t make me feel very good about the idea. And, uh, but then after you got in there, you know, and – [tsk] I don’t know. You know, just, it was, um, it was something, you know. It was a dif-, it was a different way a life and then after you got on days [papers rustling] and I don’t know, you just seemed like your life balanced out [and it's 27:02] everything went different. But, uh, there’s a lotta people that just, uh, they liked nights, you know. And, and that was their lifestyle. It just wasn’t part of my picture. I just [tapping] didn’t think it was something that, uh, [tapping] I never was like that. I never was a night, you know, person to work. [tapping] [scratching]

Cheryl McQuaid:	[27:21] Do you remember – I'm sorry.

Gary Judy:	Gary Judy. [27:26] Did, did you have any, uh, pranks pulled on ya when you hired in?

Michael Bokovoy:	[laughter] Oh, yeah. Yeah. The ole sealer in the gloves, uh, go and answer the phone, it had sealer on it, um, water. Somebody’d walk up behind ya and throw a cigarette in your backpack or your coveralls and the next thing you know you’d be smelling something and then your butt was on fire. Uh, [laughter] you know, it was just the Body Shop was – the Body Shop, you know, you could catch on fire anyway, so when you smelt something like that, you know, you, you just – you knew something was wrong. [laughter] And you look and somebody threw a cigarette butt in your pocket, you know, or you're inside, yeah, welding or whatever. Um, [laughter] I mean all in fun. I mean I don’t ever remember any pranks that, that really nothing that made me mad because paybacks are always hell, so you know. 

	But water balloons, they used – 'cause especially when it was a hot night. Uh, people eating your lunch. I remember I had a guy always eating my lunch. Um, he was just a big eater. I remember one time [laughter] he ate my whole damn lunch and, uh, [laughter] he put a $5 bill in it and told me to go to Harry’s and have lunch, uh, buy me something off the wagon. That was something else I did too. I was growing pretty much. I used to make 4 or 5 sandwiches a day and then still buy stuff off the wagon. That was a big thing back then, the wagon, and they took that away. That was, uh, that was a big thing. There’s a lotta people that don’t even know what you're talking about when you say wagon. 

Cheryl McQuaid:	[28:51] Why did they take wagon away?

Michael Bokovoy:	Well it was a, a contractural thing. It was an extra 12 minutes that the line wasn’t running, [coughing] so they [tsk] – um, there was a 6-minute break in the morning and then there was a 6-minute break in the afternoon and just that 6 minutes, uh, was, was something that people really looked forward to and, uh, it just, uh, they run relief and everything, so you know that was 6 cars that they weren't building 'cause back in, in the end, you know, we're building 16 hours, so that was 6 vehicles, uh, you know in the morning and 6 in the afternoon, so that was 12 vehicles they didn’t get. 

Gary Judy:	[29:26] Can you describe what a wagon was?

Michael Bokovoy:	Yeah. It was this, uh, cafeteria girl or, or guy or whatever had these little carts and, uh, they used to have cans of pop on it and they had cookies and, and sandwiches and fresh fruit and, and, uh, milk or whatever, you know, you wanted and, uh, you'd go over there and y-, and you'd pay her for whatever you had and then ya, you still had a little bit of time to go over and sit down and, uh, and eat whatever you had. If not, you know, you could take it back over and finish it up [behind 29:57] the line if you had enough if y-, [coughing] if you were lucky enough to have a, a job that you could finish it up on. [Yeah 30:02], those were a little bit far between, uh, back then. You just didn’t have time for that. You barely had enough time to talk. [laughter] 

Jerri Smith:	[recorder clicking] [And go 30:18].

Cheryl McQuaid:	[30:19] Mike, did you work any changeovers?

Michael Bokovoy:	Yes. [In ’74 30:22], let's see – out of, um – I probably worked 24 or 25 of'm and, um, the only reason why I didn’t really work all the rest of'm was they, uh, stopped taking supplemental help. Um, I worked a lotta different shifts. I worked first. I worked second for a little while. Kinda they got outta that. They gave you a choice and then I worked third and I kinda got into that after a while. It took a little bit f-, to get used to. When I first started out, I was a, um – I just was a Maintenance helper and, um, you kinda bounced around down in there and then, um, finally they started assigning you to places. Um, when, um – some of the bigger ones in that and then the next thing you know, you were hooked up and you were hooked up with millwrights and that was where I worked with a lot and learning how to [tapping] use a torch. And, uh, I h-, I had to do a lot of arc welding and, of course, I knew how to MIG weld already from Body Shop. So kinda the rel-, the relationship was pretty, pretty much the same except for one uses a wire and the other uses a – what they call a arc rod and, uh, stick weld. 

	And, um, learned a lotta things in there. Um, got to the point where I just, I just knew just about every square inch of the plant. Um, worked up in Paint. Pulled chain before, um, build platforms, [inaudible 31:36] rail, which is, um, was what the air hoses hung on and slid on, uh, throughout the plant, uh, put up, uh, highway rail, which was the orange, um, [tsk] safety, uh, rail that went all through the whole plant if some of it was broken, um, just anything, um, that millwrights do. It was basically, I, I  w-, I just was kinda like a Maintenance helper. [tsk] Um, and then eventually they didn’t need anybody in millwrights and they knew I liked to work so then they, uh, put me in the Pipe Shop for a while and I learned how to use a, a rigid machine. That – that’s what threads, uh, the pipe and, uh, and hang pipe and, uh, put new, um, [tsk] fire-, fire line in. I did a lotta that. Um, and that type a stuff. 

	I mean it gave me opportun-, I learned a lot and I, I use it a lot of it on, on – today on the outside. Um, so with the training, you know, that I got from UAW people and, uh, and GM, you know, the opportunity, man, I'll tell ya, it was, it was there is you really wanted [rattling] to do it. I enjoyed it too 'cause it got me a chance to meet a lotta different people in the business. Um, it was, uh, it was real interesting. [rattling] Built, built line – I used to – I built tracks before, um, pulling chain. That was, that was a, that was a different experience there. That was real dirty and, uh, and hot but, uh, it was, you know, it was part of business. That’s what you had to do. The chain wore out and you had to replace it. But, uh, that, that was a whole n-, ‘nother, plus too, uh, it kinda helped me pay bills after I got a divorce. You know, it kinda helped me pay my support and keep things going and, and, uh, it was just easier for me to do that and, uh, I had the opportunity, so I did it. 

Cheryl McQuaid:	[33:20] So did you meet any – what was your relationship with [rubbing] skilled trades employees?

Michael Bokovoy:	Uh, matter a fact, to this day right now, one of my best friends [throat clearing] that I hunt and fish with was a millwright [tsk] and he came outta Livonia plant. And, um, [tsk] in his plant, they just – they did him well. Um, they knew how to read blueprints and they knew how to shim molars and, [pen clicking] uh, and stuff. But they had what they called a maintenance welder and we used to have that and I worked underneath them one time when we, uh, retooled from Cutlasses and 98s and 88s to go to our, um, our, uh, front wheel drive care there. I think it was called the X car or whatever it was, um, that, uh, Grand Am and that when we went to that. Uh, but I met him, um, [tsk] it was about 10 years ago and we was on third shift and a, a, a boss in there – his name was Paul [Urick 34:15] – and he was a millwright boss [scratching] and Mike meet Mike. Uh, Mike knows how to read, uh, blueprints. He’s a, um, a skilled trades and, uh, Mike, he’s a production maintenance helper and he knows how to weld and, uh, next thing you know, uh, to this day – he lives in Pinckney and, uh, got a cabin up North and we hunt and fish together and, uh, have a really good relationship. 

	And I – I would say like, uh, one, one of my best buds. And, uh, then of course too, you know, I got a, a ton of'm that are still in there that I know and if I need something or if I, I,  you know, whatever. But, um, [tsk] my whole Maintenance experience was good. I, I don’t remember any-, anything bad about it. I mean there were some jobs that you didn’t like and, of course, there was certain bosses, you know, that had a different style, you know. [laughter] Some of'm called'm birddogs and some of'm would assign you a job and, uh, long as you got that job done, you know, and there wasn’t any, uh – you didn’t, you didn’t hafta hear from’m anymore. But, uh, most of my experience in Maintenance was really good. I, uh, I had a lotta fun doing it and, uh, learned a lotta different things.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[35:27] So do you feel that if you hadn't worked the changeovers and [pen clicking] met the Maintenance people, would it have been harder to have done your own job? [35:35] Were they a lot of help in oh, lockers or things that you needed as a Body Shop employee?

Michael Bokovoy:	Yeah. Especially after, um, [throat clearing] I, uh – when we, uh, got into Employee Involvement, um, that helped me tremendously. That took a lotta red tape out because, um, you used to have to fill out a ton of workorders and these guys that I got to know, if it wasn’t really too big a job and if I needed something, [tapping] um, I'd use to just go up to them and I'd tell’m, I'd say hey, Jim or Mike or Dave or, or, um, you know, [Scrubby 36:10] or whoever it was, you know, and, um, they'd – sure, Mike, I get a chance, you know, I – I'll make that up for you or I'll go move this fan a little bit, you know, maybe it got bumped by a [inaudible 36:20] truck or something. You know, it just was – [tapping] just that inside track that you needed to get through the bureaucracy that was inside of the plant, you know. 

	And, uh, and it, it was, it was really interesting. And it really actually got to the point where there was a lotta people knew that I knew people like that, so they came to me and say hey, Mike, uh, you think maybe you could get somebody to help me to this or whatever. And I don’t – I'll f-, truthfully I don’t think I ever got turned down by’m. You know, they would tell me if they were too busy and, um, and if I'd – they didn’t get it done in a couple days to remind’m and I didn’t have to remind’m very often. They went and got it done for me, so. But, uh, yeah, that was, uh, that was a good experience. That was a real good experience.

Cheryl McQuaid:	So let's talk about, uh, supervisors now. [37:05] Um, do you have a favorite supervisor, a least favorite? [37:09] How did supervisory techniques change from [tapping] when you hired into when…

Michael Bokovoy:	Yeah.

Cheryl McQuaid:	…they closed the plant? 

Michael Bokovoy:	I had an opportunity to talk to quite a few people. I used to work for my dad when he was one and, um, I don’t know. I guess, I j-, I'd n-, I only h-, I only worked for’m for a couple times when he was a, when he was a boss but, um, I liked people that were people for the people. You know, they didn’t, um, come in just to please their boss, I guess, and, um, you could tell, you could tell those people real easy. Um, the hardnose, there was some of them. There was quite a few of them. Um, it was their way and that’s just the way it was. So when you went to work for them, you pretty much knew how to handle yourself or whatever. You knew what you had to do. 	But then there was some that’d communicate with you and stand there and they'd like to talk to you. They’d pretty much cared about ya and, and I think that that’s really what makes a supervisor probably more successful than the other guy, is if, um, if you really kinda take care of your troops and they like ya, I think they probably do you a lot better job than somebody who is kinda rubbing their thumb down on you all the time, maybe thought that they breathe better air than you or whatever. 

	But, um, I, I worked for an awful, awful lotta supervisors and – I don’t know – I had an awful lotta good ones. I don’t know if I could ever pinpoint 1 person. But I did have one and I, I gotta tell ya this. And this guy, his name was Bill [Remschneider 38:42], and that man – [papers rustling] and he worked in underbody and he’s the only boss when y-, you w-, and I used to get my check, hand it to me before I went on, um, and got a payroll deduct-, you know where they'd put it in the back for ya. He’d hand you your check on Friday and you'd tell him thank you and he’s stop me right there and he’d say no, no, thank you, thank you for the job that you did for me and that you're doing for me. That’s really the only boss that I ever knew that took time personally to tell me that. 

	Um, most the other ones, a few times I’d, uh – they'd did say okay, you know, or someone would, would appreciate a job for you or whatever and they’d say thanks for helping me or whatever. But most of'm if you ever went to their area, um, you'd work for’m all day and, and, uh, you just, you – I don’t know. Some of'm would just leave you alone or whatever and none of'm would come over and acknowledge [scraping] ya or whatever. But, uh, I worked for a lotta different ones. And I think the most successful ones though [throat clearing] that were liked were, were peop-, you know, that liked people and liked to talk to people and communicate to people. Um, the ones that were not liked very much were the ole school guys. They were, [tsk] uh, pretty tough to work for. They were pretty tough to work for.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[40:02] What about jobs? [40:02] Do you have a best and a least favorite job?

Michael Bokovoy:	[sighing] Let's see. Utility was a favorite of mine for a long time and that was just something because I didn’t have to go in and do the same thing every day. When I, uh, became a part of Employee Involvement, I really got to see a different side of the business and trying to get people involved in, in the aspects of work. Um, that was fun until it started getting pretty – I g-, it started getting pretty stressful. Um, a lotta things was mistaken I guess. I don’t know. Um, but, uh, um, I, I, I liked my, um, my Relief job. That was a people-pleasing job and all you had to do was just go a little extra and, uh, that that, uh – the time went by pretty good there. You know, reaming around [rattling] and giving people relief. 

	And then when they, uh, run, uh, mass relief and stopped the line, then I had to move on to something. I’d go back in Utility and I was getting old and I didn’t – I couldn't – [tapping] I c-, I didn’t like that anymore because I was getting too beat up – arthritis, um – I don’t know – carpal tunnels [laughter] and, and [throat clearing] tendonitis and, and stuff like that, you know, started creeping up on me and, uh, I said man, I gotta do something different than that. 

	And I got into, um, what they used to call a, a Team Coordinator. Now it's called a Team Leader. And, uh, there's some good, there’s some good a-, opportunities in that. Um, but [inaudible 41:32] people, a [lotta times] [inaudible 41:34] people [inaudible 41:35], um, really, really good group. Um, that m-, that'll make it a lot easier for ya. But, um, as far as my favorite, I probably have to say Relief. I, uh, I really enjoyed that. That was probably about one of my best jobs I ever I had in there besides working changeovers. I mean I like millwright work. I, I really like that. I shoulda had a career in it but I'm not gonna go into that. [laughter]

Cheryl McQuaid:	[41:58] Can you tell us a little bit about department dinners and department activities? [42:02] Did you get involved…

Michael Bokovoy:	Eh…

Cheryl McQuaid:	…in any of that?

Michael Bokovoy:	A ton. A ton of'm. Um, back years ago, there was not a Thanksgiving or Christmas that went by that we didn’t have a department dinner and now they were all homemade. Um, everybody’s, um, wife or significant other or whatever would bring in something and, uh, everybody would share the gig. And, uh, if you had a really good boss, um, they would do something for ya on the holiday. Um, some of'm did – sometimes they'd buy the meat and, uh, [beeping] some of'm would give you a gift. [background conversation] Um, now it kinda went away a little bit for a while, uh, but then, uh, there was some departments I was in, like in Metal Finish, it seemed like about every week, we had something. You know, we had, um, [tsk] a lunch or a breakfast of some sort and most of the times it was on a Friday and, uh, it was a good get-together for everybody. 

	Um, depending on the season too, we'd, we'd make it if it was corn was coming and we'd, you know, g-, a bunch of farmers worked in there too, you know, so they'd bring in sweetcorn and someone’d say okay, well having BLTs [inaudible 43:09], uh, you know, somebody had a buncha tomatoes on their garden and it was just, uh, them types of deals. Um, but like I say, it was about every, um, u-, unless somebody too had a birthday. Every once in a while there’d be a birthday [tapping] party. But, uh, most generally it was around a holiday, every Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[43:29] How about bowling leagues or softball tournaments?

Michael Bokovoy:	[Okay 43:32], um, I was, uh, in a bowling league [scratching] for, uh – I started out in ’76 'cause I can remember it. Um, if you rolled a 200, they gave ya a red, white and blue patch and I was on that league and it was – of course, I was on nightshift then. And I lasted, um, a few – probably about 4 different years of, um, bowling but bowling got to the point where it was so long. It was a terribly, terribly long season. Um, and that was sponsored by the UAW. [tsk] And, uh, then I got outta that and then I started into a golf league and I played on the UAW golf league for probably about 18 years and we bounced around different courses and stuff. That was a really good time. 

	And, uh, then softball. Um, to this day, um, I was part of, um – through Employee Participation was what we called, it was the EPG. Um, we run a 65 team double in the nation tournament [tapping] and we did it all in 1 day and, to my knowledge, I don’t think there’s another one bigger that’s been in 1 day in, in Michigan. Um, at one, eh – a lot of the umpires had told me that umpired that and, um, that was for [Inaudible 44:49] Special Olympics and that – man we made a ton a money that day. [tapping] But we got, we got fields – let's see. We, we got fields from Delta Township. We got fields from Waverly High School. They had a couple here in the city and we had just about every softball diamond you could think of [inaudible 45:05] and that was a double elimination. That was [rattling] all people from the shop.

Male:	[Hm 45:09].

Michael Bokovoy:	And they had all different kinds a names and it was fun and, uh, that, that, um, softball, that’s about as far as I got into that in there. Um, there was a – some leagues when, um, [tsk] when I was a Conservation and Rec Chair, I, uh, remember some teams that, um, come and got entry fees and stuff and they used to run leagues but, uh, not as much as when, um, when they were younger. The workforce started getting older and things just wasn’t the same. Um, they didn’t, um, play ball like they did back when they were young and stuff. But, uh, that’s, that’s about the recreation. There was, um, um, there's a bow-, there used to be bow shoots and stuff like that but those are pretty much, um, done on the outside, you know, and if they need a little support, whatever for targets or something like that, they used to come to Recreation. But, um, that was the, the events that I was involved in with the union and, uh, as far as recreation. 

Cheryl McQuaid:	[46:08] Were those events mainly for charity?

Michael Bokovoy:	The EBG one was. Um, all the other events that we had [scraping] as far as the golf league and the, um, and the bowling, there was a kitty for that and w-, and the money that went into that went into the year-end banquet. Now if there was money left over, it would go to some – you know, I can't remember all for sure because that was quite a few years ago but I kinda remember some going to Cristo Rey and some money going here or there, a foodbank or something like that when it first started and, and stuff but, uh, most of the other ones were kinda – they had a kitty and it just – all the extra money went in for the year-end banquet.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[46:53] Mike, as we close this interview, is there anything that I've not asked you that you'd like to talk about. 

Michael Bokovoy:	Uh, no, not really. Um, just, uh, being a third generation and having the opportunity to work there, I guess, um, see what it did for, you know, my grandpa and my dad and, uh, I can't believe 30 years have gone by as fast as it did because I can remember it just seemed like a little while ago it was, um, I couldn't believe I had like, um, 20 years and I only had about 10 more to go. And I remember I had this boss and she was a really good one too – her name was Barb [Melena 47:29] – and she gave me my 25-year award and she goes the next thing you know, she goes you're gonna have 30. You know and, and really that only seems like a few days ago and, uh, and just, um, I've seen, eh, eh, the place go a lotta dif-, you know, it's – it changed a lot from, um – I don’t know. It was just – there was no involvement part. Um, what it was is you were just a number. They gave you a hammer and, uh, and, uh, you know, some gloves and a pair of coveralls and stuff down in Body Shop and told you to go to work. Now in this business that we're in nowadays, they kinda ask about ya. You know, they ask you your opinion and stuff, so, um, that’s changed a lot.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[48:14] So you think there’s definitely a lot more employee involvement?
 
Michael Bokovoy:	Eh, and it's, eh, it's an unmeasurable thing and how I say that is, is, um, because it used to be measured by how many people came to a meeting back when I was, um, in EPG, Employee Involvement [coughing] and that number by somebody coming to a lunchtime meeting didn’t have any indication at all about how much involved the person was. I mean, because…

Cheryl McQuaid:	Eh…

Michael Bokovoy:	…you know, if you had 8 guys or 9 guys in there just 'cause they didn’t choose to come and sit with you at lunchtime didn’t mean they weren't involved. And, um, I had some really, really good people [tsk] that just didn’t give up their lunch hour. They didn’t believe in it. [laughter] But that didn’t mean that they didn’t care [throat clearing] about what we were doing because after they’d come back, they always wanted to know what you talked about or, [laughter] or whatever, [laughter] so. But, um, now I think, um, business has changed dramatically compared to what it used to be before. You, um, you pretty much had to run everything by your boss and, uh, now, um, there's a lot more experience too. This workforce is a lot more experienced than, uh – and also they just, um, they're more involved than what it used to be, you know, as far as [outgoing 49:31] involvement they can see.

Cheryl McQuaid:	Now I'm gonna take a moment to ask the other team members if they have any questions for Mike.

Earl Nicholson:	Uh, [throat clearing] yeah, Mike, this is Earl Nicholson. I know you’ve been involved in the union quite a bit. [49:45] Could you list all of your union, uh, activities, your appointments, uh, and so forth?

Michael Bokovoy:	Yeah. That was another good opportunity, you know. And I, eh, I'm surprised that I didn’t say anything about that because, um, I'm awful UAW oriented and anybody that knows me, um, I'm really pro American and I, I really dislike, um, foreign cars. That’s probably my big pet peeve. Um, I, uh, had the opportunity, um, eh – one of the utility guys I knew too in a relationship that I didn’t mention previously to this that I met and I used to do a lotta hunting and fishing with the guy from a production level, not from the maintenance level, was Frank Stone. He got me the very first opportunity and experience to learn what the United Autoworkers meant and what it did. And I got a – first I started out, I was an alderman alternate and then I was elected alternate [coughing] and I can't remember exactly what year that was in. [tsk] Um, but I also had an opportunity because he w-, he, uh, run Zone quite a bit, so that meant that you were an active, you know, a lot more than what a [inaudible 51:00], you know, alternate would do. 

	So that meant I really kinda got my feet wet in the [inaudible 51:06] procedure process and, uh, you know, the Civil Rights aspect of it and, uh, and the whole deal, you know, and the contract language and, and, uh, that type a deal. So I got into that and then, um, uh, of course, I went to Committee School and then I was a committeeman for a while and then, um, then I, I ran, um, when I was an Employee Participation Advisor, uh, I kinda thought well, I mean, I'd like to do something else 'cause I always kinda liked to be involved in stuff. So I run in, uh – I run for recre-, Conservation and Recreation [papers rustling] and I was, was, like I said, a, a outdoor person and a hunting person and a fishing person and that type a thing and I really liked the outdoors and I liked sports. So I said to myself well, man, that sounds like something cool. So I ran for that and I got elected to that and I served 1 term in that. So I got to see the executive board position and, um, and, um, the leadership of, uh, the, the local union. 

	And, um, so I really actually as far as, um, covering some of the, the aspects of union, I, I covered pretty much of'm, you know. The alderman alternate and then, uh, that – so that was an appointed job actually. I had, I had said before that I didn’t have an appointment but that’s by the committeeperson, you know. They, they, they talk and, um, they pick somebody usually probably between the committee and the alternate to make that. And then the alternate position got – really got my feet wet pretty good into it and then I was District for a term and then I was also 1 term on the Executive Board. And, uh, I think that gave me, um – and I also went to Black Lake. I had an opportunity to do that. That was a very, very beautiful experience. I went up on a [Inaudible 52:52] convention for, uh, Conservation and Rec. I met a lotta people from all over the United States. Um, so, uh, I have nothing but a positive for that. And, uh, everybody has an opportunity to do that. Not everybody, um, wants to do that or, uh, you know – and some like to criticize people for doing it but, um, it sure gave me a different side of the business, a different side of the business.

Earl Nicholson:	[53:19] So tell me, uh, community activities, um, right now actively, which – what type of activities are you involved in for community outside of, uh, the UAW [coughing] or outside, I should say, outside of the factory? [coughing] 

Michael Bokovoy:	Um, I have about 5 of'm that I'm real active in. [tsk] Um, I, uh – number 1, I guess it'll go right along with being, uh, in conservation, I, uh –  I'm a mi-, Michigan United Conservation Club, uh, member. That goes right along with my Oldsmobile Outdoor Club. Um, that was a club that was founded some 55 years, I think it is now, over in Oldsmobile [tsk] and now it's called, uh, GM of Lansing Oldsmobile Outdoor Club. Um, that Oldsmobile name’s still got a lotta personal value to a lotta people that built Oldsmobiles for years but we named it – now we've just added GM Employee, GM UAW Employees of Lansing’s Outdoor Club. Um, I've been a member of that for 22 years. Um, I was the very first person invited of [group 54:25] from Fisher Body when, uh, they came [sniffling] over and, uh, wanted to expand their roots a little bit and make the club a little bit bigger. And, um, I'm currently sitting on the Executive Board on that. I'm, I'm the only 602 member that, that sits on that. I am, um, uh, co-secretary. And, um, that, uh, that club right there for what it offers for little money, um, I just can't believe that, um, more people don’t take advantage of it but today’s world, I mean, eh, at one time Fisher Body had more people than Oldsmobile and they kinda got [inaudible ] [for’m 54:59]. They couldn't believe it. 

	But it was a trend and a lotta those people that are outdoor people were, were kinda a little bit older people and then they ended up [flowing 55:09] and retiring. They're still members but they're, eh, kind of like what we would call’m at large. You know, we just give’m a lifetime membership. So then, um, [tsk] w-, I'm in Lions Club. I've been in Lions Club for 25 years. [Inaudible 55:23] here in Delta Township. Um, my dad invited me into that. Uh, do a ton a activities on that. I'm – I, I, I take that back. I am an Executive Board member of that too. I'm a co-treasurer 'cause a guy’s gonna, um, move. And I've filled every position of that. I, I, uh, was the president all the way down and I love doing that. And, um, [tsk] I'm also a hunter safety instructor, so I, I work with the DNR. And then also, uh, right now too, I got the opportunity to, uh, um, work with, uh, [Inaudible 55:58] at Waverly High School and I'm having a really good time. I'm in my fourth year doing that. So I stay pretty active. [tapping] 

Jerri Smith:	[recorder clicking] [Go 56:11].

Cheryl McQuaid:	[56:12] Mike, could you tell us, do you have a, a happiest moment or a saddest moment in the plant?

Michael Bokovoy:	Yeah, I got both. Um, the happiest one’ll probably be when I got my 25-year watch because my grandpa had one and my dad had one, so I could put 3 of'm together and, uh, say that’s, uh, 75 years of service. And, uh, the saddest part kind of is a twofold. Probably when the Fisher Body symbol came down off the wall and we had to start being called about 40 different names and then, and then when the placed closed. It never really sunk until the very last day when I walked outta there that I was never gonna go back in there. I was, um, I was going in and outta there. My grandpa was in and out of there. My dad was in and out of there. And then all of the sudden when I walked out that last day, I kept turning around and just kinda gl-, glimpsing things that I would never see again and saying goodbye to some people p-, that I'd never work for and never work with again. 

	Um, that was a big, big low and it took a while. Um, it took a while, um, for me to get over that. Uh, the Fisher Body thing I – th-, th-, that’s a sad thing but that'll never go away for me. I have a lotta Fisher Body memorabilia, you know, with my grandpa and my dad and that. So those are probably about, about the s-, the best and the saddest, um, just leaving that place. You know, it was pretty, pretty tough.

Cheryl McQuaid:	[57:33] And how did you feel about the name changes when it went from Fisher Body to BOP to BOC to LCA to…?

Michael Bokovoy:	[sighing] You just never knew. But, you know, when you went to – somebody asked you were you worked and you just told’m Fisher Body, they knew. They, they didn’t go by the [inaudible 57:50]. They didn’t go by Lansing Automotive Division. They didn’t go by BOC, you know. So, uh, they didn’t go by Lansing Car Assembly. Oh, Fisher Body. Okay. And they would write Fisher Body down and I said that, [tapping] that makes me happy because that’s what it still is to me today. And, uh, that coach not being on, on the car, man, that’s – that was, that was a big deal, man. That was really big deal. A lotta people looked for that on the rocker and the – so. But, um, to me it still is. I'm, I'm, you know, one of them. I'm the third one, so I still call it that no matter what. 

Cheryl McQuaid:	Well, Mike, I really appreciate you taking time out to talk to us. Thank you very much.

Earl Nicholson:	Thank you very much, Mike…. 

Male:	Thank you very much, Mike.

Earl Nicholson:	…[inaudible 58:30] appreciate it. 

Michael Bokovoy:	You're welcome. [throat clearing] [tapping] [recorder clicking]


/lo