Beverly ? Jack Meili wouldn’t know the first thing about diagnosing a computer problem in a new car.

But the old mechanic would challenge some of those new technicians to repair the jalopies of his younger days.

“They couldn’t put in a set of points,” he said. “They’re lost on fixing a magneto.”

Plenty of those old machines are still around and need to be fixed often. That’s what keeps Meili in business.

He keeps cars on the road and tractors in the field, said Ron McCosh, a longtime farmer north of Beverly.

“It was awfully handy to have somebody down there to help us out when we needed mechanical help,” he said. “He’s really well known around here with his radiators.”

Meili is honest and talented, said Jack Lill, a Brookville area farmer and rancher.

Jack Meili, right, talks with Doug Rees, the Beverly fire chief, about a problem with the pump on one of the town's fire trucks. Meili's shop in downtown Beverly, Meili Garage & Radiator Service, hasn't changed much since his grandfather, William Miller, opened it in 1908.

“He can fix anything within reason, and if he doesn’t think it’s worth fixing, he’ll tell you,” Lill said. “He’s kind of the last of his breed.”

Meili’s shop in downtown Beverly, a village 9 miles east of Lincoln in central Kansas, hasn’t changed much since his grandfather, William Miller, opened it in 1908. Miller, one of Beverly’s founders, moved from Indiana to Kansas in 1879 by covered wagon.

Jack’s father, John Rudolph Meili, bought it in 1914 and had several partners through the years. Jack Meili bought the business in 1952, and other than 17 months as a motor pool sergeant in the Korean War and an eight-month stint at technical school, he has run it ever since.

Jack and his wife, Lavon, the bookkeeper, put two children through college with income from the business.

Today, it’s more of a hobby, said Jack Meili, 73.

“I still come to work most days,” he said. “I kind of hope to keep functional until we can say we’ve been open 100 years.”

Meili Garage & Radiator Service is the last of the auto repair businesses in Beverly, he said, since Keim Garage owner Bob Keim died about a month ago.

“I’m really going to miss him,” Meili said. “We used to get our heads together on problems.”

He keeps snacks, water and soft drinks in an old pop machine. During the winter, Meili burns a homemade wood stove to warm the shop.

“All the neighborhood cats come in at night,” he said.

Meili’s eyesight has diminished a bit, but he can still solder a radiator. That talent keeps the business coming from all over north-central Kansas.

***ADV FOR WEEKEND EDITIONS SEPT. 10-11*** Melli Garage in Beverly, Kan., seen in this July 14, 2005 photo, is where Jack Melli's family has been in business for almost 100 years. (AP Photo/Salina Journal, Jeff Cooper)

“I get a lot of referrals,” he said. “This is the best place in town to take a (leaky radiator).”

The Meilis have maintained their membership to the National Radiator Service Assn. and occasionally attend national conventions.

Meili isn’t afraid to tinker with anything from a Model T Ford to a Rolls Royce. He keeps repair manuals from the 1920s and 1930s.

Parts can be difficult to find, but he has contacts.

“If you look in the right place, you can find anything,” Meili said, “but it takes a lot of looking sometimes.”

Much of his work is on old military trucks that have been converted to fight fires. Meili is a member of the Beverly Rural Fire Department, and he keeps the trucks running, said Doug Rees, fire chief.

“All I ever see is other people’s troubles,” Meili said.

“You can’t fix ’em all.”