‘All about honesty and integrity’: Windsor auto giant Gus Revenberg dies at 77

Windsor auto dealer and community supporter Gus Revenberg, died in his sleep on Sept. 15.

Windsor auto dealer and community supporter Gus Revenberg, whose name became synonymous with fairness on the showroom floor and generosity behind the scenes, has died at 77.

He passed away in his sleep on Sept. 15 after a four-year battle with dementia, according to his wife of 39 years.

“It was a blessing that he went quietly,” said Gaynia.

“He was the best man I’ve ever know. Very kind and very humble. He was all about honesty and integrity,” she added, noting that he helped so many people in ways most never knew.

The couple first met while working at a dealership — he as a new-car manager, she as the business manager — and later moved to Windsor to start their own store.

“We sold our furniture, everything we owned, just to get into the dealership,” Gaynia recalled. “We were really riding on a shoestring.”

From that leap came Gus Revenberg Chevrolet Buick GMC in 1987, which steadily expanded into a network of Nissan, Volkswagen, Infiniti and Kia dealerships.

Revenberg’s business philosophy was built on listening. He would remind staff that “God gave you two ears and one mouth,” urging them to let customers explain what they needed rather than push a product.

“He always did the right thing, even when it wasn’t to his benefit,” Gaynia said, adding that he expected his employees to carry the same honesty and respect into every interaction.

Work, for Revenberg, was joy. He worked six days a week, sometimes stopping in on Sundays “just to catch up,” and packed a lunch because he didn’t want to leave the building.

Vacations rarely lasted long. After only a few days, he would tell his wife he needed to get back.

“His employees were his family,” she said.

Being at the dealership, she added, was where he felt most alive.

Beyond the business, he gave generously but almost always anonymously. He supported schools, playgrounds, youth hockey teams and even contributed to a nearby police station, though he insisted his name not be attached.

“He always said, ‘I want my reward in heaven, not on Earth,’” said Gaynia.

Long before his career in sales, Revenberg was an athlete, playing both defensive and offensive line in the Canadian Football League with the Ottawa Rough Riders and the B.C. Lions in the early 1970s.

For his family, the loss is immeasurable. Though dementia had taken much of his strength in recent years, Gaynia said she took comfort in small glimpses of the man she married 39 years ago.

“Even though we could only say a few words, if you looked at him and said, ‘Did you sell 10 cars today?,’ he’d get a big smile on his face and say, ‘Yes, we did.’ If you mentioned work, that is the one thing he would acknowledge,” she recalled.

Reflecting back on the best lesson her husband ever taught her, Gaynia said it was “to be humble.”

“Never put yourself above anyone. Remember that other people have feelings and always take that into account.”

Visitation will be held Friday, September 19, at Victoria Greenlawn Funeral Home from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m., followed by a funeral service.

The Revenberg family asks that donations be made to Harmony In Action in Gus’ memory.