West Bend, Wi – Auto Safety Center has been in business 61 years, having first opened its doors in West Bend, Wi, in 1965. Current owner Joe Valind took over ownership in 2005 after starting with the company as a high school student in 1995. Since then what makes Auto Safety Center successful have been the people who are willing to work hard, grow, help others, and go the extra mile. The staff’s years of dedication, leadership, and willingness to step up have helped build the company from just a handful of employees into a team of more than 40. Service manager Michael Hilzley said, the real heart of Auto Safety Center isn’t the advertising or the billboards—it’s the people inside the shops who show up every day and make the company what it is.
Coming up in a 3-part series we will highlight several employees who started young, like Valind, and helped grow the company over years of trusted service.
Trevor started at Auto Safety Center in West Bend nearly four years ago, he said at that time, “he had something to prove.”
At 27, he already had 13 years of experience working in the automotive industry. He had become a master technician and was serving as a service-writing lead technician at the family-owned shop where he had worked since his teenage years. Still, when he walked through the doors at Auto Safety Center, he was ready to start at the bottom.
Today, Trevor is the shop lead.
His path to that position was anything but traditional.
Trevor was homeschooled for most of his education. He attended a Baptist school for two years before returning to homeschooling, and eventually completed his final year through online public school, graduating with high honors.
Traditional classroom learning, however, was never where Trevor felt most comfortable.
“I actually was a terrible student,” he said. “I’m not good at book learning. I’m very much a hands-on learner.”
Math was never his favorite subject, while history was one of the few subjects he particularly enjoyed. But what came naturally to Trevor was problem-solving—and working with his hands.
That strength was developed early.
His father owned an automotive shop on the same property as the family home, and Trevor spent much of his childhood there sweeping floors, pushing cars, handing tools to technicians and simply observing what was happening around him.
“From there on, I was going to training classes regularly as well,” Trevor said. “So just my whole life has kind of trained me to become a technician.”
By his sophomore year of high school, he was working full-time in the shop.
It was an education of a different kind—one built around experience, mentorship, repetition, problem-solving and responsibility.
“If there is something hands-on that you find interest in, find somebody, find a blue-collar job that is willing to do an apprenticeship,” Trevor said. “And take you on in your high school years or your early 20s, whatever it is. Learn from that because it is going to, one, save you a ton of money. And two, by the time your friends get out of college, you are already going to be making more than they are.”
Trevor’s own career illustrates the potential of that path. He did not attend a traditional four-year college or tech-school program, yet he built a career that has taken him from working in a family shop to leading a professional automotive team.
He points to one personal comparison that puts his experience into perspective.
“One of my childhood best friends went to college. He has a master’s degree. I make double what he does and he still has to pay his college fees.”
Trevor is quick to emphasize that the automotive industry isn’t an easy shortcut. Technicians invest significantly in tools and continuing education, and building a career requires commitment.
“It can be very expensive, but it also can be very lucrative,” he said. “It’s a skill that nobody can take away.”
Despite his experience, Trevor intentionally chose Auto Safety Center because he wanted to continue growing. “When I started here, I was the bottom of the totem pole,” he said.
That was humbling for someone who had already achieved master-technician status at a relatively young age. But Trevor wasn’t looking for a place where he could simply maintain his existing skill set. He was looking for a place where he could become better.
“At the time I was looking for a place to work, I didn’t care about the front staff,” he said. “I was looking at their head technicians and their lead technicians. I chose the place that had the best reputation for their lead technician and the most experience that way.”
His goal was straightforward: find people he could learn from.
“I was looking for a shop that I could grow in, not a shop I was going to stay in and be stagnant.”
That mindset has continued throughout his time at Auto Safety Center.
Trevor credits Auto Safety Center’s emphasis on continuing education as an important part of his development.
“Auto Safety Center, since I started here, has been big on training,” he said. “They have sent me to some of the best training classes that I have gone to.”
The company also brings in a national-level trainer three times a year for two-day, in-depth training sessions.
For Trevor, that commitment matters.
“I will take any training and suck any amount of funds you will pour into me training-wise from you guys,” he remembers telling leadership early on. “Because I want to be the best I can be.”
But his growth hasn’t been limited to technical knowledge.
Moving into a leadership role has required Trevor to develop patience, perspective and the ability to handle difficult situations differently than he once did.
“How I handle situations, I have noticed I am a lot calmer,” he said. “I am a lot more level-headed than I used to be.”
He also recognizes that growth required humility.
“I was extremely cocky at one point in my career,” he said. “Coming in here was a very big humbling experience for me.”
Asked whether that change came with maturity, his answer is simple:
“100%.”
Trevor’s journey is a reminder that there isn’t one definition of a successful education or career.
For some people, the traditional college path is exactly right. For others, success comes through an apprenticeship, a trade, hands-on experience and learning from people who have already mastered the craft.
Trevor found his path early.
He grew up around automotive repair, learned by working alongside experienced technicians, continued developing his skills through training and eventually took the next step by joining Auto Safety Center.
Trevor joined Auto Safety Center in November 2022 and, according to Mike Hilzley, has been a true difference-maker for the company. “Coming from a family with a long history in the automotive industry, Trevor brought experience and passion to the team, but initially lacked confidence in his own abilities,” he said.
Hilzley has been especially proud to watch Trevor grow into his skills and recognize his own value. He described Trevor’s energy, professionalism, enthusiasm, and high standards as a blessing to the company. “Trevor’s willingness to listen, ask questions, learn from others, and continually improve has made him a strong leader and an important contributor to the Auto Safety Center culture,” he said.
Nearly four years after starting at the bottom, he’s now helping lead the shop—and still looking for ways to improve.
His philosophy is perhaps best summed up by the advice he gives to anyone considering a hands-on career: find something you’re interested in, find someone willing to teach you, and keep learning.
For Trevor, that approach has turned a nontraditional education into a successful career—and a lifelong interest in fixing things into a leadership role at Auto Safety Center.
