Dover veteran honored with 1966 Corvette for service to fellow veterans

Nearly 25 years ago, country artist David Ball recorded “Riding with Private Malone.” The song tells a story of a soldier, killed in Vietnam, who had left a note in the glove box of his red ’66 Corvette for the future owner, in case he didn’t make it home.

On Aug. 31 a ’66 Corvette just like the one in the song’s video was gifted to Iraq veteran Curt Baumann of Dover. Baumann, an Air Force veteran, was chosen by the car’s owner, Jim Baird, of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. Baird selected Baumann out of 72 nominations from across the country to honor his generosity and dedication to helping veterans. 

Baird said he was moved to donate the car after recently seeing the video for “Riding with Private Malone.” Only the third owner of the car, Baird had been enjoying it since 1979.  

Baumann received the car in a special concert ceremony at the Troubadour Theater in Nashville. 

“I was fishing on Lake Erie with four veterans when I got the phone call that I had won,” said Baumann. “My friend Jason Hancock got a van for 18 of us to travel to Nashville. He surprised me by flying my parents and my brother in from Minnesota, so my whole family was there.” 

Baird was there for the ceremony, as was Ball who performed the song. Ball even autographed the glove box before it was given to Baumann.

“It was humbling reading the nominations,” said Baumann. “It’s kind of awkward reading about yourself. It feels like tooting your own horn and I don’t like that. But I didn’t realize how many things I had done through the years, because you just do one thing and move on to the next.” 

Baumann said he is more comfortable staying in the shadows than being in the spotlight.

“I found out it’s hard for me to receive things,” he said. “It much easier to give.”

Excerpts from the nominations

“When we heard about the giveaway, my husband and I immediately thought Curt would be perfect.” This came from the grandson and granddaughter-in-law of WWII veteran Pete Shaw, who Baumann met while working as a patient advocate at the Veterans’ Administration. 

“Curt was a true blessing in his life.” 

Baumann invited Shaw to live with him and his family when he found out Shaw’s son, who he lived with, was in poor health. He knew Shaw had nowhere to go. 

Baumann also worked with the Best Defense Foundation to travel with Shaw to Normandy for the 75th anniversary of a battle he fought in—the Battle of the Bulge.

When Shaw passed away in 2022, Baumann returned to Normandy to fulfill Shaw’s final request by spreading his ashes on Utah Beach. Baumann has kept in touch with Shaw’s family, taking Shaw’s great grandson on his first hunting trip.

Baumann also founded a nonprofit organization, Veterans Outdoor Adventures, that builds deer blinds and decks for disabled veterans and connects them with nature, allowing them to experience the therapeutic benefits of outdoor activities like hunting, fishing and archery. 

Among Baumann’s many other efforts to serve veterans include an annual Niagara salmon fishing trip and building a chapel at Freedom Farm in Massillon. 

In his nomination, Captain Travis Stocker from the Tuscarawas County Sheriff Department said, “Individuals as truly selfless and dedicated to serving others as Curt does are few and far between. I cannot recommend a better candidate.”

Baumann said the gift of the Corvette and the ceremony have been a lot for him to process. 

“When we’re done with it, we’re going to do kind of the same thing,” said Baumann. “It could be five years, it could be 20 or 30 years, but whenever we feel like we’re done with it, we’ll pass it on. But right now, it’s our organization’s to enjoy.”