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It was the surprise of a lifetime.

When Donna Spencer agreed to take in the Friday night classic car meet in Pearland last week, she thought she and her husband David were just going to eyeball some shiny vintage hot rods and muscle cars.

But it was a hot August night she’ll never forget.

Squeezed in among the machines displayed on the parking lot was a turquoise 1966 Chevrolet pickup that was a carbon copy of the truck that her daddy bought new when she was a little girl. The one he enjoyed driving the family to Colorado in. The one that was at home, where it had spent the last 36 years in a barn as Donna, who has battled health issues, entertained hope that one day she and David might be able to fix it up.

Donna didn’t realize — and then couldn’t believe — that the gleaming Apache with the chrome baby moon wheels was her late father’s beloved truck — finally ready to find new roads again, thanks to many days and late nights David and his friends toiled on the truck.

“It took a while to sink in but then someone pointed out the name “Shorty” — my dad’s nickname — on the glove box,” said Donna. “It’s the best surprise I’ve ever had. It looks so much like when my daddy had it. It’s perfect!”

The right pickup of the right year — especially the short beds — are prized by collectors and customizers alike and can command six figures, but the Spencers’ C10 is not only easy on the eyes, there’s a sweet story behind it.

“I met Donna in the eighth grade and we’ve been married 42 years,” David told me in late June, during a break from working on the vehicle. “Her father was killed in a car wreck. He was a great guy and it devastated the family. Twelve to 14 years…