Hoberg’s Complete Auto Repair keeps motoring along

Shasta and Kevin McMullen have spent years keeping people’s vehicles up and running and out on the open road. But when the pandemic hit, people suddenly had no place to go. It was hard to image how a virus could affect their auto repair shop, but before long they knew it was serious business.

“We realized it probably wasn’t going to go away by the end of March and we were probably going to have to do some adjustment,” says Kevin. “It got pretty slow for a while and we had to lay both of our guys off.”

In this video, you’ll learn how important it was for Shasta and Kevin to keep the wheels on their auto repair business. As third-generation owners of Hoberg’s Complete Auto Repair in Florence, Kevin and Shasta were dedicated to their staff but didn’t know what to do. Then they got a call from Kim Erickson at Oregon Pacific Bank, who wanted to let them know that a PPP loan could help them retain and pay their employees.

“I have known Kevin and Shasta for a very long time,” says Kim. “When I took those loan papers down to have them sign them, it was the best feeling ever to see their happiness and to see their gratitude.”

Shasta and Kevin say they are grateful for the relationship they have with Oregon Pacific Bank and are happy to be fully operational again.

“I think the biggest thing for us, being a family business and small, you’re worried that a crisis like this could just make you go away, and Oregon Pacific was here to help us,” Shasta says.

“That was our goal,” Kim says, “To see our community still thrive and these small businesses be able to keep their doors open.”

In all, Oregon Pacific Bank has loaned more than $125.2 million to 752 businesses and nonprofits in Lane, Coos, Douglas and Jackson counties, as part of the U.S. Paycheck Protection Program, retaining more than 15,000 local jobs. Part of the CARES Act, these forgivable loans provide a direct incentive for businesses and nonprofits to keep workers employed during the crisis.