Doug Gibb is 92, but talks and walks like a much younger man. He says he feels fit, healthy and alert, and there is no reason to doubt him.
Gibb also says he is greatly blessed by God, which is why he wants to give thanks by providing a much-needed Barrhead service: transport for wheelchair users.
A driver for 75 years, the retired farmer proposes to take people about town in his white Dodge van.
It will be a gratis service, not a business. Offers of gas money, however, will be extremely welcome.
“God has been so good to me,” said Gibb, a lifelong Christian. “I feel I should put the strength and health that I’ve been blessed with to good use.
“I said to myself ‘Why don’t I use this energy? Why don’t I give back this energy? Why not put it to use?’ I’ve always lived by faith.
“I feel I’m giving to God by helping someone who needs help, someone who is in need through circumstances beyond his or her control.”
Gibb is hoping to persuade a younger person to join him in his venture and share driving duties.
“It means the service will continue when I can no longer drive,” he said.
Barrhead Mayor Brian Schulz is full of admiration for Gibb, describing him as an inspiration to everyone and a wonderful role model.
“He may be the answer to someone’s prayers,” Schulz said last week.
He added the Town had done everything possible to ensure there was no red tape hampering Gibb’s plan.
“We thank him very much for bringing this service to our community,” he said.
On a casual and occasional basis, Gibb already helps wheelchair users.
“I often get asked to help people needing to get to a doctor’s appointment,” he said. “I have a van and load the wheelchair into it.”
Now Gibb plans to put the service on a more formal footing, confident he is not overreaching himself.
He will stick to the town of Barrhead’s boundaries, so there will be no awkward trips to the city.
“Maybe someone wants to take in a meeting downtown, “ he said. “I can deliver the person there, wait and then take them back.
“There is a need for such a service. Not everyone has a friend available to drive him to where he wants to go.”
Gibb, who used to farm in the Lawton district and now lives in Klondike Place, only discovered last week that his current licence and insurance allow him to perform such a service, provided it is not a business.
“I went to the Town office to see whether it was possible,” he said. “They have been looking into it for me.”
His Class 5 operator’s licence expires on August 14, 2014. As someone aged over 75, he says he is required to renew the licence every two years, submitting a medical certificate with his application.
“I feel fine when I drive,” he said. “I started driving when I was 16, but I’ve had a licence since I was 19.”
His long driving record, he added, is clean – the most serious accident being a collision with two deer. As a retired farmer, he also had experience in the 1940s of driving a three-ton truck, taking cattle to Edmonton.
So will he be giving his transportation service a name?
Gibb was unsure, but when it was suggested “God’s chauffeur” might be appropriate his eyes lit up.
“Yes, I rather like that,” he smiled.
Anyone wishing to contact Gibb can reach him at 780-674-7374.
