Classic/Antique Car Repair: 1973 Ford LTD Overheating, radiator hoses, little old lady

Question
1973 LTD, 8 cylinder, automatic, 400 cu in engine. Little old lady owned,
lived in garage all it's life.

Here is the history of the repairs of the car:
Dec. 2006
Car overheated, cylinder block heads cracked due to leak in radiator.
Repaired radiator, hoses, clamps, thermostat, had engine cylinders rebuilt.

July 2007 (7 months later)
Car overheats again (light came on). Had it towed because we did not want to
have the engine rebuilt. Mechanic could not get the car to overheat again
once
in shop. Figured out that the water pump was bad, replaced water pump and
3 other belts.

September 4, 2007
Car runs rough, took to shop and they replaced plugs, condenser, fuel filter
and spark plugs.

September 9, 2007
Car overheats again this time cracking the block on the engine. Watt else
could have caused the engine to overheat and should the mechanic not bear
some of the responsibility of this repair since we brought the car to him to fix
it anyway.

The car belongs to my seventeen year old son, it is in near-mint condition
physically. I'm starting to think this mechanic is taking our money because he
believes our son is abusing the car. After having the engine rebuilt last
December, he has been METICULOUS about keeping the fluid levels up,
stopping if ANY engine light comes on, we keep all fluids in the car in the
trunk (except for gasoline).

Answer
Well, not sure you will like my answer. Don't know which mechanic you are wanting to hold responsible, but once your car has been repaired and leaves the shop unless the intended repair fails immediately, it is hard to show in wasn't a "new cause" problem. Also, putting a car in for running rough does not address an overheating problem.

Also, waiting until the  warning light comes on is very bad practice. They are "failure is emminent" warnings. Fluids should be checked at least weekly, unless you know of a problem and then check more often.

As for as the recurring overheating, with out further information, I would guess you have a head with a hairline crack that only give problems in an extreme heat situation (long traffic, etc). The only way to know is to have the head Magna-fluxed.