Rochester, NY: Daniel L. Vail, 65, passed away peacefully in the early morning, April 6th 2021, surrounded by family. He is pre-deceased by mother Shirley Pickreign and father Donald Vail. He is survived by his wife Virginia Wenz-Vail; daughter Amy Wilkinson (Bryant); sons Michael Vail (Cristy), Matthew Vail and Andrew Vail; grandsons Colin Vail, Channing Wilkinson and Grayson Wilkinson; sister Bonnie Roth (Bob); brothers Ronald Vail (Kathy) and Timothy Vail (Nicolette); several nieces and nephews and his beloved “miniature” English Bulldog, Winston.
He was a proud mechanic and business owner for over 45 years. He was well known by the South Wedge community and will be greatly missed.
A memorial gathering will be held during the summer. Details will be provided by the family at a later date.
In lieu of flowers, the family appreciates contributions to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.
So sorry to hear this. My condolences to the family. Dan it was nice spending some time with you recently. See you on the other side my friend! You will be missed.
Our heartfelt condolences to the entire family he sure was a special guy and will be greatly missed
Danny was always so kind and helpful with all of my car issues when we lived in the south wedge. So sorry for your loss…a loss for us all.
Oh my gosh. I am soo deeply sorry. My heart goes out to all the family. He was such a wonderful man and taught me so much! I will never forget you Danny! Rest easy
I went the shop to see Dan about my car today and I was ready to hear one of his jokes as I have for the past 15yrs…when I was met by a stranger that said he passed away.😪 I almost fell to the floor in disbelief…
I saw you as a dad and will miss you alot!!
Praying strength for the family. Rest in peace Dan. The best and most honest mechanic EVER!!
May all the best memories of Dan bring us comfort during this hard time in our life. The loss of someone dear to us is never easy. He left us too soon and may God have a special place for him to watch over us.
Hopefully, you are in a much better place than all of us in this covid-ridden world. So sad that your bulldog is left behind and hoping that he gets much love and support as he will be missing you so much. Prayers for strength for the family and dog you left behind, and again hoping you are in a place as beautifully depicted in the bible! Rest in peace, Dan.
I am so surprised to hear of Danny’s passing. He was way to young to die. Please accept my heartfelt condolences. A unexpected loss is so hard ,you are all in your thoughts and prayers. I will never forget Danny.
Kathy Butler-Neary
Vail , you were my buddy.😔
You would let me hang out at the shop & watch the cars get worked on.
You were most honest mechanic I knew.
You told me the names of all the dogs at the doggie day care below your shop.
This is all so sad, I was suppose to see you last week at the shop, but couldnt make.
I wish I did.😔
Because of you & your love for dogs we rescued two Chihuahuas that needed a home & now live with me.
Think you!💙
Thank you for your trust, time & kindness.
It was really nice getting to know you & your pup.
My love to your family & pup.
Thanks for the friendship.
Dan you will be missed both personally and professionally, You are honest, well humored. and fun loving..
Mike Ringelberg aka the cut through artist his wife family and Killer.
I am so very sorry for your loss. Dan was always very helpful to me when I needed my car fixed. He will be missed.. God bless.
Dan and Karyl Logan
Our condolence. He was a great guy!!!
So sorry to see this. We were sad when he left the wedge and we heard he went to Spencerport.
Now this is a heartbreaker. Sympathy and prayers to the remaining family.
I am so incredibly heartbroken to hear this. Dan was one of my very favorite people and I always liked joking with him when I saw him. My deepest, sincerest condolences to the entire family. ❤️
I feel so sorry that Dan passed away. He was always so upbeat, helpful, and friendly. It felt so good to have him and his folks around in case of trouble. He will be remembered. My sincere sympathy for the surviving family and friends!
— Wojtek
Heartfelt Condolences to the family. Prayers for strength and comfort to u all. Dan will definitely be missed.
danny was always a great guy and always very helpful to his friends and community he will be sorely missed
So sorry for your loss. Our loss really. Danny Vail has taken care of us for nearly30 years. His was part of our Wedge neighborhood and we always told friends how he helped keep us on the road. Our thoughts are with you.
I am so sad to read of Danny’s passing. I’ve lived in the wedge since 1992 and he was the gear head I didn’t have in my life…until him! Honest to a fault and always showing me the old part like I knew the difference. I’ll look him up if we drive where he’s at…..I’m still driving the mini….Big hug to the family….the boys…the folks that worked with him. and his dog!
I am gonna miss our weekly fights about who’s gonna win the race. Reminiscing about all the old races, camping, our pups. You were more than just a customer on the phone, you were a friend. Till we met again…. Race on Dan!!!!
My condolences to the Vail family. Dan was a wonderful person and mechanic. He will be missed.
My deepest sympathy and condolences to the Vail family . Danny was a great guy 🛥 🏎
Dan, Truthful, honest, full of integrity and professional pride. I enjoyed seeing you and felt that my car and I were in the safest of hands. I will miss you. My deepest sympathies to your family.
Dan will be so missed. Love to the family, know he was a great and noble man who helped so many.
Susan with the silver and/or blue Jetta
I liked taking my car to Danny not only because he was good, reliable and trustworthy, but because I enjoyed my time with him. Like some of the cars I’d see in his lot, he was a classic.
Shocked to hear of Dan’s passing! My heartfelt condolences to his family.l did consider Dan as a friend and will truly miss him. RIP bro.
So shocked to read of Dan’s passing. So many heartfelt condolences here agreeing what an upstanding, honest and skillful professional mechanic Dan was. I knew him as my go to mechanic who kept all my used vehicles running for more than 30 years. But, what a fine gentleman he was.
Never will forget one late Friday afternoon when I drove in with a serious brake problem just before leaving for an important out of town weekend meeting. Dan saved the day for me and replaced the brakes.
I used to joke “happiness is having a good mechanic”. But, you were more than that. My prayers for you and your family.
The A.R.Pierrepont family was shocked today to learn of Dan’s passing. Awesome person and personality on top of being the best mechanic I ever knew. We have been taking our vehicles to him since the eighties and stayed in touch when he moved out the west side of town. Spending time with him always put a smile on my face. He will be dearly missed. Signed, Jeff Sturtz, Dave Sturtz, Charlie, and Valerie.
I’m so sorry of hearing of the passing of Dan my deepest Condolences to his family and friends. He was truly great and honest mechanic.
my condolences . he was a very good man
I am so shocked and so sorry. My prayers are with Dan’s family. He was my mechanic for many years and always went above and beyond in his service to his customers. Trustworthy, always a sense of humor, and gave excellent service. He also was a friend when you came in for service. He was an honest truthful man who told you just the way it was with your vehicle. Oh, God, I am so sad.
I’m so saddened to have just learned of Danny’s passing. My thoughts are with the family and loved ones he’s left behind. I met Dan fresh out of high school in 1981, working with him not far from his current shop…it was probably the last place Dan Vail ever worked for someone else. What a nice man he was! He would literally give somebody the shirt off his back…anybody who needed it! He was so sharp…not a lot got by him, and with his dry sense of humor, you really had to pay attention to catch all Dan’s jokes! He will certainly be missed. The world has lost a good man in Danny Vail.
I found out today May 27 that Dan passed away in April, to my shock and deep sadness. He was my mechanic for probably 30 years. Dan was kind, honest and ran his shop with integrity, a much valued attribute. He always took good care of my car and was so thoughtful with me as I usually sat in his shop or down the street (South Avenue) at a coffee shop and waited for my repair to finish. I hope his son Andrew who took over the South Avenue shop is able to run this biz with the same honesty/integrity as Dan did. I shall remain a customer. Healing prayers to all the Vail family. With enormous appreciation, MacClurg Vivian
I just went to the shop to drop off my daughters car and words can not express my disbelief in reading the memorial service sign for my dear friend and mechanic! Over the past 30+ and possibly 40+ we’ve came to respect and trust each other. We talked about our kids and life and the various challenges it presents. I loved him like a brother and I was pleased at the great job Andrew was doing. But I’ll stop because a tear is about to fall. Peace and comfort, be with you all. In the name of God and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Tim McCauley
dan was such a great guy. the south wedge lost a treasure. RIP best mechanic ever
Dan has always meant the world to me. He moved into the house next to me when I was 13 around 1985. I grew up tinkering in his house garage handing him wrenches and Pepsi and bringing lunch. He and Ginny were family to me. I hung out at the shop and answered the phone and talked to a lot of his friends and customers. There’s pictures of us on the wall there at the races. After moving away, I got to come back to Rochester to bring my daughter to go to college and we went right to the shop – only to have the wind taken away. Jim (good friend) was there with Andrew and I tried as best to not lose it in front of them. I now think of his laugh and corny jokes. Andrew let me know its the same circus, just a different bunch of clowns now. That shop, that family, is truly in my heart. Thank you.