They say that when you fall off your horse, get right back on, and the same might be said for driving a car.

Four years ago, when mechanic Walter Fubler was sent home from the hospital after months of recovering from a stroke, he got right into his car.

He promptly drove into some bushes in the yard.

"I had to learn everything again," said Mr. Fubler, 63.

And so when he was recognised on Friday for 48 years of service to the HWP Group, it was no small personal triumph.

At the age of 16, Mr. Fubler started working for Pearman Watlington (PWs) in the waterfront garage as an apprentice mechanic.

As he worked his way up to foreman tester, he watched the company go through many changes.

"PWs bought out a company called Young Trott that sold Austins," said Mr. Fubler. "Young Trott had bought out a company called Lucas House. Then PWs bought out Master's garage."

In the end, PWs mechanical division was bought out by Holmes, Williams & Purvey, which later became the HWP Group.

And the cars themselves changed dramatically. "When I first started I was working on cars like the Morris Minor," he said. "They were very simple cars.

"My first car was a Morris Minor. All the mechanics had them. They were good cars. I have seen engines change. Most cars were manual when I started and now most cars are automatic. All the cars used to come from England. Now they tend to be Japanese and some come from Europe."

Nowadays, Mr. Fubler just drives the HWP shuttle, picking up customers from town and taking them back to the garage on St. John's Road to collect their vehicles. He also runs errands.

"The manager asked me if I wanted a less stressful job and I agreed," he said. "I was on my way to a boat cruise in Florida when I had my stroke. My wife Donna and I were staying in a condo. We hadn't even gotten on the ship yet."

His first symptom was that his jaw started going tight.

"I walked to the ambulance," he said. "Slowly my voice started going, gradually my arm then my hand and leg started going numb. It was slow not quick, maybe over an hour or two hours."

Before he'd left for his trip his doctor had cleared him health-wise, saying his blood pressure was fine.

"My wife didn't think I was going to make it," said Mr. Fubler. "She thought I was going to die."

But he did not die. Surgery to remove a blood clot in his brain was successful.

"Once they removed that, then everything came alive again," he said. "It was lucky I was there."

Today, he said he does not miss working with cars. He is happy with what he is doing.

"Working with cars came with a lot of stress," he said. "I work on my own car sometimes. But cars today have changed a lot. They are very technical now."

He and his wife, Donna, will soon celebrate their 32nd wedding anniversary. They have two grown children, Tamara and Trenton.

Tamara is currently in university studying social work. His son Trenton works at Sun Life Financial.

"Tamara was born premature," he said. "She weighed one pound six ounces. She was very small. She went blind because of the prematurity. My wife went through a lot. We are very proud of Tamara. She is very independent."

His son Trenton, has one daughter Trinique, eight. Away from work, the Fublers are active in the Somerset Seventh Day Adventist Church.

"I am an elder in the church," he said. "I spend a lot of time talking to people."

Mr. Fubler and 52 other employees of the engine repair company received long service awards on Friday at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute (BUEI).