| A publication of the Central Oklahoma Classic Chevy Club. A not-for-profit corporation. A chapter of Bow Tie Chevys and Classic Chevy International. |
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What's in a name? In this case, a lot |
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By Rip Riley COCCC member It seems you can influence your child's life with careful name selection Our son, Cory, turned 21 on Sept. 13 and I have been thinking about him a lot lately. When we were expecting Cory's birth and considering prospective names, I was really torn. My full name is William Arthur Riley III. While I wanted to pass something of myself on to my son, I considered "the Fourth" to be a bit much. During our search we came across a theory on how you might influence your child's nature by choice of names. It held that if a child's initials spell a word, that that word will have a strong affect on his or her life. Acting on that theory and having already decided on Cory as a first name (Kori if a girl), we chose Asher as a middle name making CAR his initials. It seems to have worked! Cars have had a major role in Cory's life. Like many his age, Cory has been drawn to Hondas, much as we were attracted to Chevys in our earlier days, by their affordability, styling and performance potential. Over the years he has developed into quite a shadetree mechanic by simply diving into projects that would intimidate most people. He had a pair if '50 Olds 88s for a while but returned to the Hondas. Now he is driving and working on a 914 Porsche. If I read him correctly, he misses that Honda reliability. After graduating from high school he took a semester of paint & body at Francis Tuttle but decided that wasn't for him. For a while, he worked in a shop in Oklahoma City that sold performance equipment for sport compacts. His drag racing at Thunder Valley made for good exposure and contacts but the business was under capitalized and had to close up shop. From there he went to work for Auto Zone and then on to Parr Automotive where he is working presently. He seems to be enjoying the exposure to the Street Rod end of things. Does anyone else see a pattern here? He's already owned almost as many cars in his lifetime as I have. I share Bill Chaffin's enthusiasm and appreciation for the next generation of "car nuts" and am proud Cory is one of them. They add diversity to the hobby and keep the interest alive. I hope Cory continues to enjoy playing with cars. It's an interest I got from my dad and one he can perhaps pass on to his son. What he names his son, though, is up to him. Editor's Note: I seem to remember that a few years ago Rip and his wife Debbie gave Cory a unique present for his birthday. It was a burnout certificate. Now that's positive thinking on the part of trusting parents. |