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 Anton's Marine, originally named Elephant Butte
Boat Storage, opened in May, 1969 and Jim and Carol began running it in
August of 1969. Their Grand Opening took place Easter weekend of 1970.
The name was changed to reflect the personable attitude the owners have
with their customers who always know they can call and speak with one of
the Antons. They are both committed to giving the best quality service
that can be offered.
Practically a native of New Mexico, Jim was raised in T or C from the age of two. He left for a while to
attend High School in Grants,
New Mexico and then college at New Mexico State University
in Las Cruces and Eastern
New Mexico University in Portales and moved to Elephant Butte the day
after graduation from ENMU with Carol and their son, David. Jim brought
with him a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Technology and a
Minor in Industrial Management from
Eastern New Mexico University and working experience from early childhood.
Soon after opening the business, Mercury Marine
offered the Antons a sales and service franchise in the fall of 1969.
Jim immediately began training to become a certified mechanic in Mercury
and Mercruiser, as well as Johnson, Evenrude and OMC Sterndrives. He was
a "first" to certified with Johnson Outboards before he even
became a dealer - a feat that defied even the protocol of OMC. He not
only achieved a certified status in a very short time, he was awarded
the prestigious "Mercury-Mercruiser Master Mechanic" award
after only four years. This award typically takes six to eight years to
achieve. Jim still maintains his Master Mechanic's status and is
virtually the only practicing 30 plus year Mercury Mercruiser Master Mechanic
in the
United States. He is also the only Mercury-Mercruiser Master technician in the state
of
New Mexico.
Carol
immediately went
to work
in
the office
with the
help
of her
training in
Office Management and
Accounting. In addition
to her office
work,
she has
become a Certified Mercury
technician in 1984, a Certified
Mercruiser
technician in 1986,
a
Certified
Johnson technician in
1988 and
a
Certified OMC Cobra technician in
1989. She
says that she
never intended
to
become
a "line mechanic",
but
rather uses her knowledge to help with diagnosis, training new
personnel and also to
be able
to
discuss and explain
aspects about
the repairs and diagnosis
to the customer.
She is
the service writer and front office
person and when special
rush
jobs
come in, she also works on engines.
Carol
has
also been
awarded the
OMC
"Parts Pro" award for promoting and selling
OMC
Genuine Parts. She still maintains
her Certified
status with Mercury/Mercruiser.
Although they
no
longer
sell boats, Jim and Carol
still want
their customers to
feel that
"their (the customer's) boat" is as important
to
the Antons as it is to the customer who owns it. Because of their
pride in workmanship,
they
maintain
the highest rating with Mercury Marine
-
that
of a "Premier Servicing Dealer." They are also connected by
computer to Mercury Marine
to
make
parts orders a breeze for them and for the customer, for those parts not
on hand.
When not at work on boats and motors, Jim is an
avid pistol shooter, having shot competition in IPSIC, PPC and is now
competitive in the popular "Single Action Shooting Society" (SASS) or
"Cowboy Shooting." He has also been Chairman of the T or C
Recreation Advisory Board, as well as serving as a Reserve Deputy for
the Sierra County Sheriff's Department for 23 years.
In her spare time, Carol says she finds that
writing, reading, crocheting, knitting, quilting and helping with their only grandchild keeps her quite busy in her after-hours time. She
is also a member of the Truth or Consequences
Community Theatre, Inc.
Jim and Carol's children, David and Brandi
both worked for short periods of time at Anton's Marine and took with
them a sense of pride in workmanship and dedication to seeing a job well
done.
Anton's Marine is located at the intersection of
Anton Dr. and
Odessa Street in the city of Elephant Butte, in the heart of
New Mexico. Elephant Butte is located half way between Albuquerque, New Mexico and
El Paso, Texas, along Interstate 25 just east of Truth or Consequences
and a mere 20 miles north of Caballo Lake.
We service most American made engines whether still under
warranty or "Classic."
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