In 1990, at 23 years old, Roy T. Dorey, returned to his home in Battle Creek, Michigan, to see his family because he was leaving the country to fight in Desert Storm. Roy’s father told him that he would buy him a car, so they went to the local Chevrolet dealership. Roy’s father was a devoted ‘GM Man’. As they were looking at vehicles, Roy looked across the street to the Ford dealership and saw the car he wanted… a 1989 Mustang. When he told his father he received a resounding NO. Roy went to Desert Storm thinking about his dream car… the Mustang he knew he may never have.

Roy went on to serve 22 years in the Army; 8 on Active Duty and the balance in the National Guard. During those years he served 5 Deployments: Panama, Desert Storm, two tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Like many Veterans of multiple deployments, Roy paid quite a price for this service because along the way, his family was permanently damaged, and he returned home to financial ruin.

In 2014 Roy’s father passed away. In the final days of his life, Roy’s father could barely communicate but he managed to tell Roy, "go get that car you wanted." It was obvious to Roy his father had carried the memory of his refusal to buy the car Roy wanted. His final wish was that Roy would have his… a 1989 Mustang.

Roy and his father had worked on cars for most of Roy’s life and in-between deployments. They built a Camaro together, but Roy’s dream remained… he always wanted to build the 1989 Mustang pro street rod.

Roy eventually found the car he wanted in Iowa… same model, same color, identical to the one he wanted back in 1990. The car looked largely stock, but it had been built up as a ‘street rod’. Roy brought the car home and drove it for less than a year when he realized that there were serious problems. The ‘hot rod’ had not been built correctly. Roy found someone who could re-build it, JP Racing in Portland, MI. JP, the owner, agreed to ‘chip-away’ on the project as Roy could afford to pay for it. He estimates that he is 50-60% complete. The car is essentially in storage and Roy’s payments barely covers that. Roy has been in this ‘catch 22’ for quite some time and anticipates another 5 years to complete the project.

Roy Dorey was born in Battle Creek, Michigan. The youngest in his family, he graduated from Battle Creek Central in 1985. Roy joined the Army on delayed entry in 1984. Two weeks after graduation he left for Boot Camp. Growing up, Roy, like many young men, was not interested in sports, but rather his focus was girls, the military and working on cars with his father… ‘fast cars’. They did enjoy building the Camaro, but Roy was always obsessed with that 1989 Mustang. He talked about them while in the Army and so much so, he was nicknamed, ‘Mustang’. Roy lives alone in Olivet, MI, and is employed by the Department of Logistics Agency where he processes Military Surplus equipment.

Roy is on a mission… his Bucket List Dream is to complete this car for his father. He said someday, when the car is complete, he knows that his father will be riding with him.