Expert Service

Two decades ago, Altamont boyhood friends Troy Poe and Steve Stoldt worked together as mechanics in an Effingham shop.

Their paths diverged for a time. Poe took a job in an auto parts store, and began to do mechanical work on the side – working out of his home’s garage in Altamont. Stoldt drove a truck. Poe’s client list grew, with people coming from as far as Effingham on the east and Greenville on the west.
Early this year, they got back together. But it wasn’t without some growing pains. “Two of us working in a one-car garage was pretty cramped,” Poe said.
They decided it was time to expand. To get some more space and to move into the middle of their client base, they found a place for a garage in Vandalia. On July 9, the two men and Poe’s wife, Rhonda, launched their new business, which they named Expert Service.
The shop, located at 1710A Hillsboro Road (just north of Veterans Avenue on Ill. Route 185), is a far cry from Poe’s garage. It has four bays, a lift and plenty of elbow room. Their list of services includes oil changes, tune-ups, engine work, transmissions, and heating and air-conditioning. They work on cars and pickups.
“We both do it all,” Poe said. “We’ll tackle big jobs together.”
Though Poe said that while heating and air-conditioning work is his favorite, he has been certified as an ASE Master Technician. To get that certification, he had to pass a series of nine tests.
“Motors and transmissions are what I like to work on,” added Stoldt.
And while the men are taking on the mechanical work, Rhonda does the paperwork and keeps the office organized. She’s a graduate of Lake Land College, with an associate’s degree in management.
While working toward that degree, she had to come up with a fictitious business to learn what goes into starting one. Her choice? A garage called Expert Service. The name stuck, and when it came time to name the trio’s new enterprise, the choice was clear.
And letters from satisfied customers on display in the business seem to indicate that they’re living up to the name.
“We’ve been in the business long enough that there’s not much we can’t figure out,” Poe said.
Expert Service is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, and by appointment evenings and weekends. The telephone number is 431-2236.