For Ellensburg resident Dave Wakefield, restoring WWII vehicles is more than a hobby, it’s an honor. "It’s kind of an
adventure. Like being an archaeologist and finding a historical treasure you can share with others," he said.
Wakefield owns an array of WWII military vehicles, all in various stages of restoration. He said he spends hours in research
to restore them according to military standards of the day. He looks at pictures, watches military campaign footage and even
studies paint color all to honor the heroes who defended America’s freedom.
"Every time you restore one, it’s like going back in time. When you sit and look at it, you can feel what the troops did for
our freedom," he said.
Wakefield is very attuned to the details. When he enters his 1943 Burma Jeep in parades, he dresses in military uniforms,
which he also collects, to match the time period.
"Dave doesn’t believe in doing anything halfway," said VFW Post Commander and Vietnam veteran Gene Ketzenberg. "He does
everything the best he can, that’s the kind of gentleman he is."
A clean vehicle is out of the question. "I don’t think there ever was a vehicle that was spotless," Wakefield said. In one
parade, Wakefield felt uncomfortable because the jeep was too clean. He found a mud puddle and splashed through it for a
genuine look. He felt better after that and some veterans got a good chuckle out of it too. "They never went on patrol in a
clean vehicle," Wakefield defended himself.
His Burma Jeep was used as a troop transporter, Wakefield discovered. It would carry six soldiers on "seats that would beat
the reputation right off your back," Ketzenberg said.
Two sat in front, one driving and one navigating. Two more would pile in the middle row facing the windshield. These soldiers
carried ammunition. The last two would climb in the back facing out the back window. They were the first ones out of the
vehicle because they carried the machine gun and tripod and needed to set up quickly. The ammunition soldiers followed them
out.
Wakefield graduated from Central Washington University in 1989 and remembers taking several history classes during his
tenure, but it was just words on a page to him then. Since he began restoring WWII vehicles, history has come alive.
"You can read history in a book," Wakefield said. "But until you get your hands on something people have used 60 years ago,
you don’t know the true depth of its impact."
Wakefield received a real-life history lesson at a Veteran’s Day parade in 2001.
Dressed in his appropriate WWII military uniform, Wakefield drove to pick up five WWII veterans who would ride with him in
the jeep through the parade.
When he stopped the jeep, two veterans hopped in back, facing the back and two jumped in the middle facing the windshield
without thinking. It was like they had done it a million times, it was right out of the history books.
