THE SENTINEL: Don's Auto Service Celebrates 60 Years of Family Legacy

Family owned since 1957, Don’s Auto Service proudly celebrates 60 years of service to Belchertown and surrounding communities. Located at 141 Sargent Street, Don’s grandson Erik Gay took ownership of the family-operated service and sales center in 1991 along with his mother Linda.

Acute attention to detail and earnest work ethic has built Don’s reputation for honest, quality and professional service. “I grew up watching my grandfather work in his shop from sun up to sun down, always doing right by his customers,” Erik says, “it’s in my blood.”

Erik maintains the Don's difference, a reputation for quality service and passion for building customer loyalty. A Certified NAPA Auto Care Center, the shop upholds their competitive edge by investing in the highest-grade tools and training to provide expert service from basic repairs to major complex repairs.

The business became a Belchertown staple in 1957. After working for ten years at the local Hudson Dealership in the center of town, Don began to feel a spark of entrepreneurial spirit. A few customers followed him home one day and the rest is history. Don ran his shop out of the family’s two-car garage and within a few weeks Don’s brother Frank also left the Hudson Dealership to join him. The family’s two-car garage quickly became too small to serve the surplus of customers seeking Don's expert service. Don went from adding a third bay to his home garage to expanding down the hill, building the sizable shop that is known as Don's Auto Service today.

Guided by growing demand, Erik will lead Don’s into another phase of expansion by adding four additional bays within the next six months. The extension of the shop will better serve their customers and improve efficiency.