ST. LOUIS — For more than 30 years, Buck Ford has run a towing and auto repair shop near North Vandeventer and Cottage Avenue.
His business is named after him.
Practically everyone on the north side neighborhood knows "Mr. Buc."
"He's a real nice guy. He's fixed my cars. He did real good work. I'd recommend him to anybody," said neighbor Yolando Washington.
"He's a laid back, private kind of guy. He just comes to work and he's usually here as long as he wants to be," said a friend of Mr. Buc, who wanted to remain anonymous.
Ordinarily, "Mr. Buc" would have been at his favorite spot on Friday, but his wooden fences were locked and his shop was dark because a stray bullet hit the beloved business owner.
"First we hear a couple of shots and then 15 to 20 shots," the friend said.
Ford's friend told police just before eight Thursday night two people, likely teenagers, repeatedly shot at each other in the 3800 block of Cottage and then ran off.
"I saw how fast that youngster was running and he was running like a jackrabbit," recalled the friend.
He said bullets flew as he sat in his car and waited for "Mr. Buc" to close for the night.
"I was ducking in my car because I didn't want to get hit. I wasn't afraid. I didn't get hurt," said the friend.
Suddenly, his bleeding, longtime friend staggered outside, leaned against his car and told him he'd been shot.
His buddy quickly called 911.
"Yeah, I made that call and the paramedics got here and took him to a hospital. He was inside his shop just washing his hand when a bullet ricocheted off the car rack and hit him in the chest.," said the man, who almost got caught in the crossfire himself.
What's more, the popular business owner was shot the night before his 82nd birthday.
"Yep, today he turned 82. I talked to him last night when he was in the hospital. He told me he had planned on spending his birthday just working again at his shop. He just can't believe he was shot," said the man's friend.
At this point, police don't have a lot of information about the shooting.
They're asking anyone with information to call the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department.
Meantime, what is clear, those who know "Mr. Buc" are so relieved he survived to celebrate another birthday.
"He's real lucky, you know, that the bullet didn't hit his heart because it was right above his heart," said the business owner's friend.
"I hate that this happened to such a nice man. I want to tell him to get well soon because I'm probably going to need you to do some more work for me, and, I am praying for you," said Yolando Washington.