By Gary Ogle
gogle@wbcowqel.com
JR Jenney is doing what he can to let one of the best-kept secrets in Bucyrus and Crawford County get out this weekend – exactly what is Ohio Specialty Services Motor Ranch.
“All the renovations we’ve done over the 25 years, the new showroom,” Jenney said while chuckling when asked what the big secret is about his quarter-century old business he wishes wasn’t quite so well kept. “A lot of people drive by here and don’t know what we do here. Everybody asks me what we do all the time: a bunch of everything.”
Jenney and Ohio Specialty Services Motor Ranch will host an open house at 1825 E. Mansfield St. in Bucyrus from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, complete with a live broadcast on Iconic Rock WQEL 92.7 FM. Many of the products the business sells and services can be seen in a new 1,800-square-feet showroom at the Bucyrus location and will be on display there.
“We’re just trying to make awareness for the public and have them come out and see the new showroom and everything that we do here,” Jenney said.
The big building and sprawling property on East Mansfield Street in Bucyrus was started in 1991 by Jenney’s father, Don Jenney, as ONDEGO. With just six employees and a few buses, ONDEGO’s roots were in specializing in handicapped transportation for Crawford County. JR joined the business a few months after its inception and a new-bus dealership for Thomas Built Buses and Mid Bus was added.
Although the younger Jenney went on to pursue his passion in the marine industry in 1996, he maintained contact with ONDEGO as time allowed and returned full-time in 2005 when his father died. ONDEGO eventually became Ohio Specialty Services.
With Colby Bright as general manager, busing transportation remains a staple for Ohio Specialty Services, but well beyond the borders of Crawford County. The company now provides services for Boards of Developmental Disabilities in Crawford, Marion, Morrow and Wyandot counties.
“We have been proud to serve North Central Ohio with full-service needs transportation,” Jenney said. “Our focus has been from the start on the safety and service of our clients. Our mission has been and will continue to be getting every passenger to the right destination safely, on time and eager to make the most of their day.”
But as the rest of the company’s name – Motor Ranch – implies, a variety of products beyond buses and transportation services is the impetus of its growth. Used cars, boats, motorcycles, scooters, golf carts, jet skis and tow vehicles are all a part of the retail inventory for the Motor Ranch.
“We also handle financing, full service, warrantees and have a body shop with a paint booth,” Jenney said.
Jenney credits Bright as being “very instrumental in helping grow our company to over 30 employees and four locations including Bucyrus, Marion, Chatfield and now Galion.
“We purchased a nice building in Marion on Pole Lane Road for our busing operation in that county and our plan is to add a few new boat lines there to cover Delaware and Alum Creek and surrounding local lakes. We also purchased the bank in Chatfield and plan to use it as a retail center for ‘lake toys,’ hopefully capturing most of the lake traffic northbound.”
The most recent expansion for Ohio Specialty Services Motor Ranch is to Galion.
“In Galion, we recently purchased Mies Motors, a great dealership that has been in the same location for over 35 years,” Jenney said. “We plan on continuing the great reputation of service and sales that Tom (Mies) has provided for that area over the years.”
Plans are to open that lot in Galion in about a month with approximately 40 vehicles.
“What we try to focus on is clean, one-owner, Car FAX cars,” Jenney said. “That $5,000 to $10,000 range is where we really excel.”
Another branch of Ohio Specialty Services is boats. In addition to being a new boat dealer for Checkmate boats, they also sell used boats and work on watercraft under the name Bucyrus Marine Restoration.
“People with old bolder boats – new interiors, gel coat, anything from the ground up.”
Jenney went on to share his company’s philosophy and goals.
“With our growth over the years, our goal has been to keep a fun and small dealership feel for our customers. We understand the search for a reliable dealer in the area comes with high expectations. Undoubtedly, that has a lot to do with the vehicles that are being considered, but at Ohio Specialty we think you should also have high expectations for our dealership,” Jenney said. “At Ohio Specialty Services, customer service is not a department – it is our specialty.”
Retail hours for Ohio Specialty Services Motor Ranch in Bucyrus are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays.