< Previous80 COASTMONTHLY.COM / December 2015Currents | Collectionsof art in pristine condition, popping with vibrant colors of iridescent green, bright orange and shiny red.“My wife says I’m one lure away from being a hoarder,” Fuselier said. He has been collecting for quite a number of years and finds his lures by going to es-tate sales, garage sales, attending lure shows and running advertisements.“I am constantly buying and selling them,” he said. “It’s a lucrative hobby, be-cause many of them will increase in value as they age.”Although Fuselier grew up in Houston, he spent much of his childhood visiting family in Louisiana, fishing in stocked ponds.“I first held a cane pole when I was about 6 years old and caught a goggle-eye perch,” he said. “I was hooked on fishing from that moment.”His world opened up to saltwater fish-ing when his job required him to spend a lot of time in Galveston, he said. Although the majority of anglers were using live bait, Fuselier knew he would have more luck with lures, which he’d been using since he was a teenager.“The one I use for catching the most speckled trout is my plastic black and white Bingo Plugging Shorty Shrimp from the 1950s,” said Fuselier, who rarely uses lures from his collection, preferring to use vintage lures he finds at garage sales that don’t qual-ify as collectibles.The oldest lure in his collection is a hand-carved Fred Nichols wooden shrimp, made in the late 1930s. Nichols, the founder of PICO, was known for his hand carvings of red cedar shrimp.Fuselier also has an assortment of lures hand-carved by friends and even mermaid lures he’s collecting for his daughter.His favorite spot to fish is the 37th Street rock groin in Galveston. And now that the fishing bug has gotten hold of his son, they go out quite often, usually early in the morn-ing as the sun comes up.“You make a lot of memories when you fish with your kids” he said. “It’s something they’ll always remember, no matter how old they get.” Vintage fishing lures are displayed in a case at Texas City resident Andre Fuselier’s home.“My wife says I’m one lure away from being a hoarder.” – Andre Fuselier COASTMONTHLY.COM / December 2015 8124HOURSERVICE7 Days A WeekLocated Across From Galveston County JailBonding From The County Jail Bonding From All City JailsGale Lilliman - Owner •GALVESTON •HITCHCOCK •SANTA FE•TEXAS CITY •DICKINSON •KEMAH•LEAGUE CITY •FRIENDSWOOD •LA MARQUE409-762-0188CHECKS ACCEPTEDGulf CoastBail Bonds5324 Ball St.If you find yourself “Hooked” call409-877-72846026 Seawall Blvd., Suite B @ 61st Street & The Seawall!We accept most major dental insurancesOral Surgery | Implants | Smile Makeovers | General DentistryGULFSIDEDENTAL.COM$100 OFF BRACESDOWN PAYMENT*COMPLIMENTARYSMILE MAKEOVERCONSULTATION**FREE CUSTOMWHITENING TRAYS*COMPLIMENTARYORTHODONTICCONSULTATION**Orthodontic consultation $150 value. Down payment $500 value. Custom Whitening Trays $150 value. Good for 90 days. Limit one per patient. Not valid with other offers or prior services rendered. Terms and conditions may apply.**May require additional treatment.Donna Corbett NewdingCo-Owner/Realtor7205 Avenue O Santa FeCountry Estate 107 MustangStampede Dr.FIVE STAR REALTOR TEXAS MONTHLY MAGAZINE 2011-12-13-14-15822 6TH STREET NORTH, TEXAS CITY TX. 77590409 939-8095e-mail: donna@donnanewding.comweb site: www.donnanewding.com Two Santa Fe Beauties82 COASTMONTHLY.COM / December 2015Story by Michael A. Smith Photos by Jennifer ReynoldsThis is not Sebastian Tropea’s father’s Oldsmobile. It was, how-ever, his grandfather’s Oldsmo-bile. The grandfather, also named Sebastian Tropea, bought the burgundy 442 new in 1968 for $3,600. The car was BOI — bought on the island — and has been in the Tropea family since it rolled off that island lot 47 years ago.The younger Sebastian Tropea was 16 years old when he got the keys by direct bequeath from Grandfather. Not everyone thought that was a good idea. Both the formidable car and the teen driver survived the relationship, however; in part, perhaps, because of the vigilance of Alfio Tropea, Se-bastian’s father, a hot-rodder and gear head who preached against street racing.The 442 — an odd duck for Oldsmobile, a car company built on solid, middle-class American muscleOlds marks era when the family ride wasn’t a minivanCurrents | Nice Rides(Top) Sebastian Tropea’s Oldsmobile 442 originally belonged to his grandfather, also named Sebastian Tropea, who bought it new in 1968. (Above left) Tropea’s grandfa-ther bought the car for $3,600. He still has the original bill of sale and the check receipts for the purchase. (Above right) The engine is original and has only 55,000 miles on it. (Right) Tropea has photos of his Oldsmobile in front of the family’s store when the car was new. COASTMONTHLY.COM / December 2015 83409-763-81601902 Wharf Rd • Galveston, TX 77550www.katiesseafoodmarket.comCatch our dailymarket specials!Red Snapper • GrouperShrimp • CrabBring this ad in and save 10% off your purchase!expires 12/31/152111 Strand StreetGalveston409-762-022484 COASTMONTHLY.COM / December 2015Currents | Nice Ridesrespectability that built cars for accountants and bank managers — began in 1964 as an option on high-end Cutlass models. The tag — rendered 4-4-2 at the time — meant the car came equipped with a four-barrel carburetor, four-speed transmission and dual exhaust pipes. Lore has it that Olds scram-bled to produce the 4-4-2 option after seeing the success of Pontiac’s Tempest beefed up with “GTO” options.By 1968, the 442 had shed its hyphens and become a model in its own right. It went on to become one of the definitive versions of the American muscle car, rubbing fenders with Chevelles, Cyclones, Roadrun-ners, Gran Torinos and the Pontiac GTO, which some argue launched the brief, glori-ous muscle-car era.The muscle car is an odd duck, too. It seems to have been a transition vehicle for people headed toward adult responsibili-ty — children and mortgages, steady jobs and PTA meetings — but not quite ready for that staid sedan. Here was a car that could carry four or five kids and a week’s worth of groceries in the back seat, leave rubber on the shift between first and second gears and cover a quarter mile in about 14 seconds — America.“This was the family car,” Alfio Tropea said. “This is the car we drove to Mass.”For about $25,000 in today’s dollars, Sebastian Tropea the elder got a family car with a 400 cubic-inch V8 rated at more than 300 horsepower and mated to GM’s fabled Turbo Hydra-Matic 400 transmission.The car has been kept original, right down to a few door dings and cracks in the lacquer paint.“All we’ve done is take care of it; keep up the maintenance,” Sebastian Tropea said.The car is pushing 50 years old, but has only 55,000 original miles on the odometer. It idles with a low, rumbling growl. With the hood up, you can just hear the hiss of that big carb sucking air. It will still make the back tires yelp on that shift between first and second gears.Sebastian Tropea drives it only occasional-ly, mostly in parades and the like. Somebody tries to buy the 442 every time he takes it out. It’s not for sale.“It means too much to us,” he said. “You can’t put a price on something like that.” Sebastian Tropea, and his father, Alfio, agree his 1968 Oldsmobile 442 is a perfect 10, as the front plate suggests.(Left) The original inspection sticker is still on the windshield. (Below) Tropea’s 1968 Oldsmobile 442 has dual exhaust.“This was the family car. This is the car we drove to Mass.”– Alfio TropeaTexas Lighthouse Foundation,Inc.LIGHTHOUSE CHARITYTEAM“People Helping People”281-482-9400www.lighthousecharityteam.comTax Exempt # 76-0627508YEAR END DONATIONName ___________________________________________________ Phone _________________________Address ______________________________________ City/State __________________ Zip ___________Donation: $___________________________DON’T MISS OURANNUAL GALA!Reservations Being Taken NowTABLESDance Floor . . . . . . . .$3,000Off Floor . . . . . . . . . . .$2,000Discount Limousine Service AvailableThe holidays are a time of thanksgiving and gift giving and we ask that you keep Lighthouse Charity Team in mind. All donationsare tax deductible and make a difference in local communities. Call 281-482-9400or visit www.lighthousecharityteam.comformore information. We thank you for helping us continue our mission of “People Helping People”.Please Mail/Fax this form with donation to: LIGHTHOUSE CHARITYTEAM, c/o Scott Gordon3502 FM 528, Friendswood, TX 77546Phone: 281-482-9400 • Fax: 281-482-3704LIGHTHOUSE CHARITY TEAM, P.O. BOX 16494, GALVESTON, TX 77552 • ALL CREDIT CARDS ACCEPTED86 COASTMONTHLY.COM / December 2015Chart A Course toYour Holiday Eventat the Most Unique Venueon Galveston!Transform yourevent into an experiencethat you and your guests willnever forget! 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Prices ranging from $425K - $995K 713.504.4202 martiejterry@comcast.net Sterling Realtors, LLC 88 COASTMONTHLY.COM / December 2015FeaturesStory by Shannon Daughtry | Photos by Stuart VillanuevaTraveling back in timeCouple takes to open road with vintage trailer Jill and John Hamm own a vintage-style Shasta travel trailer. They haven’t had the trailer long, but they’ve already made trips to Surfside Beach in Brazoria County and North Carolina.Standing in the doorway of a small, sea-foam green travel trailer, Jill Hamm had a look of happiness and deep contentment.Hamm looked out of her modern-retro travel trailer — a reissued replica of a 1961 Shasta — at the rolling waves crashing on a Galveston beach and closed her eyes as the cool breeze hit her face.The trailer was a birthday gift from her husband, John. They’ve made it a personal traveling oasis on adventures across the country.“It’s a lot of fun,” Jill Hamm said. “It’s really comfortable — we really enjoy it.”The Hamms, who live in Bayou Vista, haven’t had their trailer for long. But they’ve already made a few trips to Surf-side Beach in Brazoria County, North Carolina and to Galves-ton’s seawall when taking breaks from their law enforcement careers. COASTMONTHLY.COM / December 2015 89West End Gallery & Decor409-974-0039 • 16708 San Luis Pass Rd. Suite I(Jamaica Village Shopping Center)or 2204 Post OfficeThurs-Sat 11–6, Sun 12–5www.WestEndGalleryDecor.comHome DecorCoastal FurnishingsArtLampsRugsJewelryAccessoriesInterior Design ServicesREACH YOUR WEIGHT-LOSS GOALS4623 Fort CroCkett Blvd • Galveston(oFF seawall, near aCademy & salsa’s)HoUrs: mon. - FrI. 9am - 6pm, sat. 10am-4pm409-762-7646www.islandhealthcenter.netMedically supervised weight loss. 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