“People let you in in traffic, give a friendly wave when they drive past and a nod and a smile. It feels good to be a part of that, that’s why I’m still here.” Mr Saad said
Over the years Mr Saad, who has three children and one grandchild, said the jobs that have stuck in his memory have not been of replacing batteries, changing tyres or solving mechanical mysteries, but of rescues.
“I rescued a wedding dress locked in the boot of a car on the bride’s wedding day; I rescued a photographer’s camera from a locked car at a wedding; I’ve rescued someone’s pet snake and another person’s pet rat from a car, and countless dogs and children,” Ms Saad said.
“One rescue took 20 minutes because every time I unlocked the car, the dog inside would put his paw back on the lock which gave myself and his owner a good laugh.
“Quite a lot of the time the vehicle isn’t the most important thing – it’s easing the Member’s stress and letting them know that everything is going to be OK.”
NRMA Executive General Manager Motoring, Nell Payne, said that over the past three decades Mr Saad had continued to demonstrate what an asset he was to the company.
“James continuously goes above and beyond for each and every Member he services,” Ms Payne said.
“With his ‘look outside the box’ attitude, he is always getting our Members out of their sometimes very sticky situations and he does this in the most positive, friendly and caring way.”
NRMA Member Service Manager Robert Younes said Mr Saad was a devoted and well respected man.
“James is very well known around the Parramatta and Oatlands area, whenever I attended jobs in these areas the first question I would be asked was, “do you know James Saad?”. It seems that he has family and friends in every street in the Parramatta district!” Mr Younes said.
