Name: Billy Indra
Hometown: Clarkson
Service Manager
Years at PVE: 48
Billy Indra grew up on a family farm a few miles outside of Clarkson.
“When I was young, the store was always open on Saturday nights,” Billy recalled. “My father and I would drive into town together and we’d always have something we needed from John Deere. It was always a way I felt I was helping my father out on the farm. That was the main reason I started working there a few years later.”
Billy started working at Vacin’s in Clarkson, which later became Platte Valley Equipment, when he was in high school. He worked part time, leaving school early to work his afternoons in the small John Deere service shop. When he started in 1973, there were only two guys in the tractor shop and four in the set-up shop.
When he graduated a year later, he transitioned into a full-time position, learning how to work on farm equipment and become a technician. He stayed in the community, always able to help out on the farm whether that was making the short drive back home or in the shop.
“I’ve worked for John Deere for forty-five years. I’ve never been anywhere else. The best thing about my job is interacting with the customers. People come in now, and I’ve known them their whole lives. I worked with their dads and their grandfathers. I watched them grow from when they were kids, coming in with their parents. The equipment changes, the way we do things might too, but the people are the same, and that’s everything.”
For the past ten years, Billy has been the Service Manager for our Clarkson location.
“The part I enjoy the most is working with the technicians. Some days, being the service manager can be a difficult task. It’s never a good thing when something breaks so it’s important that we do everything in our power to make that better, hard-wearing and durable. We have some great techs up here, and they really work their hardest to get through challenges and make every day a good day.”
“Billy Indra is a well-respected, long time employee who is dedicated to his job and getting the customers taken care of,” said Darren Gall, Clarkson Store lead. “Billy is an early riser and usually is at the dealership between 5-5:30 a.m. every day. Billy always has a positive attitude and believes tomorrow will be a better day.”
“At the end of the day, I tell my techs that it’s closing time,” Billy said. “Hurry up and get home, so we can all get back out here again tomorrow.”
Outside of work, Billy spends his time chasing down his grandkids, heading to their activities and cheering them on at games. He also loves to bowl and work on his garden and yard with his wife.
Congratulations, Billy, on being Clarkson’s Pride of Platte Valley!