NEWINGTON
Town Crier
Righting a wrong Friday, December 7, 2012
After radio station breaks promise to local woman, auto shop donates 20K in repairs By ERICA SCHMITT STAFF WRITER
After one radio station broke its promise to restore a local listener’s car, another stepped in and with the help of her gracious community, took over the task. More than just a competition between rival rock stations 106.9 WCCC and Radio 104.1, this marked an opportunity to improve the life of a woman whose health condition shows no signs of improving. Born with the life-threatening Volume 53, No. 45
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limb- and tissue-swelling disease lymphedema, nothing is ever easy for Newington resident Michelle Mele. But when she won WCCC’s contest to provide a listener in need $10,000 worth of car repairs, things were looking up for Mele as she anxiously anticipated the installation of a wheelchair lift in her 2001 Honda CR-V. After the station returned it to her in August basically untouched, NBC Connecticut ran a “Troubleshooters” segment calling its bluff. When Radio 104.1 Station Manager Brian Zullo got word of the injustice in late September, he called up his longtime friend Marty Smith, controller at Newingtonbased auto repair shop Turnpike Erica Schmitt | Staff Motors and the two took on the From top left, Radio 104.1 morning personality David Fisch, Turnpike Motors Owner Doug Fernandez and Controller project. See AUTO, Page 3
Marty Smith, with Newington resident Michelle Mele and her newly-restored 2001 Honda CR-V.
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