Earles Glass
1204 South Brundidge Street
Troy, Alabama 36081
(334) 566-4343
1-800-628-9799
Earles Glass is a family owned and operated business in Troy, Alabama. Owner, Rusty Earles has been in the auto glass /auto body business since September 8, 1971.
We are dedicated to providing the best service we can to keep you and your family safe. This is why we strive to keep current on all changes in windshield safety and installation.
Please look around our site for more information about the importance of a properly installed windshield. You will also find useful links to reports and government regulations on the installation of automotive windshields. Also be sure to read the comments of some of our customers and leave your own.
Rusty Earles with IGA Board Members
Left to Right:
Rick Rosar, Bandi Hantke, Rusty Earles, Dave Zoldowski-President of IGA
2nd from the right-Shawn Newport
AGRSS Board Member, Carl Tompkins and Rusty Earles
Rusty Earles speaking with Ralph Nader about the importance of windshield safety.
Ralph Nader is an advocate for public safety issues. He is very concerned about guidelines used in the installation of automobile windshields.
To learn more, visit the Public Citizen website.
Rusty Earles and John Fransway
Rusty Earles, John Fransway and John's daughter
John Fransway is a State Farm Insurance Agent in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. After the tragic death of his sister Jeanne, due to the failure of her car windshield, John became an advocate for changes in the requirements for windshield installation. State Farm Insurance backed John on this crusade and made changes in their policies concerning this.
We have a great deal of respect for John Fransway and the changes he would like to see implemented. Hopefully, this website and the information we provide can help John's cause and be a catalysis for change...in memory of his sister Jeanne.
WHAT IF...?
Three teenagers were riding in the pickup pictured to the right.
When the driver fell asleep, the vehicle left the highway and
began to roll. As the vehicle rolled, the windshield popped
out. That day in 1988, I realized "shade tree training" is just
not good enough. You see, that truck was a gift to my son
and I had personally installed the windshield in it. Those three teenagers were my children. I thank God
that neither of my children were hurt - but this is not the norm. This was my wake-up call. Many times I have asked myself.... What If ? You should ask yourself the same question. Why? Because the next story IS the norm.
My name is Rusty Earles and I have been in the auto glass and body repair business since September 8, 1971. The story above really is a true story. Although our story had a happy ending, I must tell you that it was not the most probable outcome. Unfortunately, the next story is. It is also very true and very real. I am certainly not a writer but if I could, I would paint for you the mental picture of a beautiful little blonde-haired teenage girl. She is energetic, outgoing, and popular. Her parents are very active in PTO. Our small rural school seems to bring everyone together kind of like an extended family. They are the all-around good family who is well-respected by everyone who knows them. I have known them, I guess, since she and my youngest daughter were in kindergarten together. Now, they are seventeen. Only a few days ago, she was in my home visiting my daughter. Now, it is a cold rainy January night. I have driven up on an accident in the middle of the highway. In my mind, I can see her parents at home watching TV together while waiting for their little girl to come home.
Sadly , I know she will not be coming home tonight... or ever again. That beautiful little blonde-haired teenage girl, who only a few minutes ago was so young and full of life, is lying in the road on top of the windshield to her parent's minivan. She is dead. The police and other emergency crews have moved back 20 yards or so away from the accident scene and are talking amongst themselves while waiting for the coroner to arrive and take her away. Overwhelmed with sadness for her family, I stand near her body praying, please dear God, don't let them come here. Please don't let them see their little girl like this. Not this picture... not this scene stamped in their memory forever. Oh, please let the coroner come and take her away from this awful place. She deserves to be held and loved by her mom and dad, to hear them say how thankful they are to have such a precious daughter, not lying all alone in the rain, a spectacle for gawkers.
I am wet and cold but I can't make myself leave. I cannot bear the thought of leaving her there alone with no one who knows her or cares for her. Then, a deep sense of shame and guilt comes upon me. A voice in me says, "you are partly to blame for this." No, I didn't install her windshield or in any way cause this crash, but I am part of an industry that has allowed innocent unknowing people to be turned into a commodity to be misled, manipulated and misused. Her death is the result of greed and negligence, not because she had a horrendous crash. Her vehicle is not all mangled and crushed. It has simply rolled over in the road and sat back on its wheels. She should have been able to walk away. She is dead because her windshield was not bonded to the vehicle properly. My mind is tormented again with the thoughts of "What if?". What if this was one of my children?
What if this was one of your children?
