Not your average anniversary gift
(Photo by LOREN BENOIT/Hagadone News Network) James Hammermeister surprises his parents with a 1948 Packard Deluxe Eight at The Coeur d’Alene Resort on Thursday. Herb and Corrinne Hammermeister are in Coeur d’Alene from Edmonton celebrating their 60th wedding anniversary. The Hammermeisters drove a Packard similar to this one on their honeymoon in Coeur d’Alene at when they stayed in the now-gone Pines Motel all those years ago.
LOREN BENOIT/Press Herb Hammermeister and his wife, Corrinne, both 82, smile as they sit in a 1948 Packard Deluxe Eight parked in front of The Coeur d’Alene Resort on Thursday.
Courtesy photo Herb and Corrinne Hammermeister on their wedding day, Aug. 23, 1958.
Herb Hammermeister and his wife, Corrinne, were surprised to find a 1948 Packard Deluxe Eight parked at The Coeur d'Alene Resort on Thursday. The couple is in town for their honeymoon and drove a Packard similar to this one 60 years ago on their honeymoon. (LOREN BENOIT/Press)
Courtesy photo Herb and Corrinne Hammermeister's Packard on their wedding day, 60 years ago, covered in flowers to celebrate their special day.
Herb Hammermeister, right, poses for a photo next to his son, James, and his grandson Brandon. (LOREN BENOIT/Press)
Corrinne Hammermeister reacts as she sits in a 1948 Packard Deluxe Eight parked at The Coeur d'Alene Resort. Corrine and her husband, Herb, once had a Packard, which they drove to Coeur d'Alene from Edmonton for their honeymoon 60 years ago. (LOREN BENOIT/Press)
Herb and Corrinne Hammermeister bought this pillow form the Coeur d'Alene Resort Gift Shop on Thursday. It was later placed inside their 1948 Packard Delux Eight, a car gifted by their son James. (LOREN BENOIT/Press)
COEUR d’ALENE — The shiny, moss green 1948 Packard Deluxe Eight parked in front of The Coeur d’Alene Resort certainly caught Herb Hammermeister’s eye Thursday afternoon.
“It’s the first thing I saw. I says, 'There’s a Packard out here," he said. "I was just going to go take a look at it."
Hammermeister and his wife, Corrinne, both 82, are in Coeur d'Alene from Edmonton celebrating their 60th wedding anniversary, which was Thursday. They once had a Packard exactly like this one. They drove it to Coeur d'Alene on their honeymoon when they stayed in the now-gone Pines Motel all those years ago.
That suspiciously familiar Packard wasn't there Thursday by accident.
It was a gift from their son, James, who delivered the ultimate anniversary surprise when he handed them the keys.
"This is quite a shock," said Herb, who inspected the car in disbelief.
The Packard before them was almost exactly what Herb once owned, right down to the swan hood ornament. James, a venture capitalist and retired real estate developer from the San Diego area, dreamed up this very special gift idea and started researching in January.
He found what he was looking for in Sioux Falls, S.D. His find was one in a million — the engine, paint, interior, everything is original. It started right up and it had only 67,000 original miles on it.
Dad wasn’t alone in being pleasantly blown away.
"Well, (I'm) overwhelmed. Absolutely overwhelmed. I can't believe it. This is the car my husband had when we were dating. Not the only reason that I wanted to date him, but it was one of them,” Corrinne said, laughing. "I mean, when you’re young, a car’s very important."
Herb slid into the driver's seat and fired up the engine. He pressed on the gas and honked the horn. Corrinne ran her hand across the dashboard, then opened the glove box to find a 1958 Rand McNally map of Idaho and an old postcard of the Pines Motel, thoughtfully placed by their son.
"It all came back quite quick, didn’t it?” Corrinne said, laughing as a tear streamed around the tissue she dabbed on her cheek. "I didn't think I’d be crying on my anniversary."
James, the eldest of five children, had contacted Resort staff to help orchestrate his plan. Security director Nick Buley and security officer Tyler Tidwell took care of the car for James when it arrived a few days ago. They had been in on the secret for weeks.
"I signed for it and we tucked it up in the garage and had it covered," Buley said. "It just feels truly nice to be in a position to help people like this."
"This is great," Tidwell said. "It makes you feel good as a person just to do something for somebody else and see the happiness on their face."
James' fiancée, Deni Jacobs, his son Brandon and daughter-in-law Stephanie also traveled to Coeur d'Alene to be part of the Packard surprise.
"For me, it's the joy of all James' work coming to fruition," Jacobs said. "He pulled off the plan immaculately."
She said the service and care provided by Resort staff is something people just don't get in California.
"I'm just overwhelmed at their generosity. It's been amazing," she said.
Brandon said it meant a lot to see the pure joy on his grandparents' faces as they went back in time to relive some memories.
"For my dad to be able to bring that to them I think is really, really special," he said. "It's nice to be able to share this moment with everybody."
"The Hammermeisters are a very giving family," Stephanie added. "Through the years, Grandpa and Grandma have been able to give as much as they could, so for them to enjoy this moment, and have it be as special as it is, is truly a blessing to watch."
James said that for him, that's what life is all about.
"My parents come from very humble beginnings," he said. "My dad was a real car enthusiast. He always loved cars, and he always talked about the Packard, and so did my mom, so I think it’s really special when somebody is in a relationship for that length of time and they can share those memories and experiences and it brings those memories back.
"At the end of the day, that’s what life’s all about — it’s a series of memories.”