We all work on cars for different reasons. Some of us just love wrenching on something old with our own hands, while others want to build the most perfectly-balanced and engineered Pro-Touring machine. There are those who want to go fast, those who want to look cool, and those who just want to get away from the wife. But one man found that working on his hot rod helped him to overcome some harsh losses in his life.

The Houston Chronicle brings us the story of John Leigh, a man who lost both his father and his uncle. These two men helped Leigh discover his love of hot rodding, and it was hot rodding that would provide the therapy for Leigh to deal with the loss of his closest family.

The hot rod, a 1929 DeSoto, isn’t your typical T-bucket or ‘32 Ford. But that’s because Leigh’s father, David, had many different hot rods to share with his kids growing up. Encouraged by his father, John Leigh bought a 1929 DeSoto right out of high school back in 1996 for just $1,700. The DeSoto then sat in the corner of his garage until 2009, when he finally got around to working on it.

Leigh chopped the top 7-inches, and installed a 327 Chevy engine with a tunnel ram intake and zoomie headers lifted from a funny car. During its maiden voyage, David Leigh told his son that he hoped it wouldn’t be his “last ride,” and the name stuck.

While his father and uncle have passed on during the build, Leigh credits his children with helping bring the DeSoto back to life. He hopes to pass his passion for hot rods on to his kids, something he believes all fathers should do. It’s the only way to preserve this hobby we all hold so dear – so he reminds us “to keep on rodding.”