The business boasts updated signs with a new logo. (Victor Texcucano/Staff)

A charred board rests in the corner office of Moose Auto Glass — a symbol of the past and future of the longtime Tyler business.

The inch-and-a-half thick board was rescued from a doorframe following a devastating fire less than a year ago. One side is black from smoke, while the other has small lines indicating how fast Chandler Dobbs, one of the youngest Moose grandchildren, has grown.

The Moose family quickly picked up the pieces and continued on after a fire destroyed the building, records and 11 cars on Jan. 6.

With ice covering the ground, the family huddled into a supportive ball for warmth and watched years of work burning that day as firefighters worked to keep the blaze from spreading.

“I remember going home that night and thinking, ‘We have 10 families who live out of this business. What are these people going to do?'” owner Jacquelyn Moose said. “What are we going to do about them, not only what are we going to do (about us)?”

 

AFTERMATH

Following the fire, the Moose family grew closer as local businesses and longtime customers reached out to the family, and the staff pulled together to keep things going.

Moose Auto Glass opened its doors in 1954 and has been repairing automotive glass as well as repairing upholstery and convertible tops for 60 years.

Owner Eddy Moose grew up in the business, repairing his first windshield while still in grade school. He took over the business in 1985, and it moved from downtown to its current spot at 4220 Timms St., in 1989. He said when he bought the building, it was outside Tyler’s city limits.

Eddy Moose runs the shop while Jacquelyn runs the numbers.

After the fire, drivers stopped to shake Eddie Moose’s hand, and customers never quit being loyal.

The owners bought Tracfones and transferred the business lines to them the next day and immediately found a temporary location to set up shop while the family decided exactly how to rebuild and proceed.

Mrs. Moose said that first day they had no pens, paper, computer programs or credit card machines. They started taking in work and had to figure out how to bill for it later.

“It was amazing how many people came to help,” Mrs. Moose said. “They swept floors and helped us open up. We are very, very blessed, but I’m just glad it’s behind us.”

After months of planning and weighing options, Moose Auto Glass decided to come home to their spot on Timms Street.

The old building served as a second home to the Moose family, and their three daughters have worked in the business.

“The only time they spent working the auto glass business was when they were in trouble — they swept floors,” Eddie Moose joked.

Daughters Jennifer Eckles and Angie Dobbs both work part time on the accounting side, and the smallest of the owner’s six grandchildren, nearly 1-year-old Farrah Dobbs, is sometimes wheeling around, greeting customers and making friends in her baby walker.

 

THE FUTURE

The new building is slightly smaller than the old one, but it’s more economical and has a parking lot, a first for the location. Mrs. Moose said she could always tell how busy they were by the number of cars parked on Timms Street.

“The old building was very separated,” Mrs. Moose said. “It was originally the Sportster warehouse.”

The front of the building now faces Loop 323 and the business has a brand new, updated logo welcoming customers into a spacious and tastefully decorated lobby with comfortable couches in its waiting area.

The family said they came back home.

The family threw a party Saturday to thank their loyal customers and friends. It was complete with their first ribbon cutting as well as food and entertainment.

“Trying to decide what to do was a big deal for us,” Mrs. Moose said. “We looked at building and buying something else, and had this (building) sold at one point, but then we said, ‘Let’s go home. It’s where we started. ‘Let’s go home.'”