Church Car Show

Today our little country prairie church had a picnic and car show!  Many of our parish members are car enthusiasts and have nice vintage cars.  So our pastor decided it would be a good idea to line these all up today on a nice sunny day and let the owners show them off!  There were some real beauties displayed here today.   Also some parish members brought their restored trucks - pickups are a staple in the life of a country person - and nobody ever really gets rid of them.  One ten year old boy in our parish has his own truck already!  He loves cars and working with them.  At 10 yrs old he is already a pretty good mechanic.  Someone gave him a 1969 Datsun truck to fool around with and he is restoring it himself!  All in all it was a gorgeous sunny day, and everyone enjoyed stepping back in time to the era when cars were CARS!   I was especially happy to see a 1951 Studebaker in the line up of cars.  Studebakers were made in South Bend Indiana where I was born and raised, and lived there for 23 years.  My own Dad worked at Studebaker on the door assembly line.  I am posing next to a 1951 Studebaker that perhaps my own father put the door on!  Here are photos of the cars and trucks:

A general view of one end of the line of cars.

Another view of about the middle of the car line-up.

There were vintage cars from all decades.

Another view of the line-up.

This fellow is showing off a 1930 Ford.  It has been meticulously restored in every detail and has been the winner of many awards in car shows in the area.

This 1930 Ford had a Rumble seat!

I asked the fellow how a person actually got into the rumble seat.  He showed me the round metal stepping plates on the bumper and fender.  You can see them on the right hand side.  A person had to be either young or very agile to get into and out of those rumble seats!

The back view of the 1930 Ford.

A 1951 Studebaker Commander with the "bullet nose" front.

The interior of the Studebaker.

Here I am standing next to the 1951 Studebaker.  My own father worked on the door assembly line when this car was made.  It is very possible that I am holding the door he once put on.  I think it is amazing to think that 67 years after this car was made, I am standing next to something that my own father had a hand in making!  When this car was made I was only 3 years old.  My Dad probably never imagined that his daughter would be standing next to it, 67 years down the road, at a church car show in Minnesota!

Another 1930 Ford.  The owner of this car is no longer alive, but his family members brought the car to the show. 

The back view of another 1930 Ford.

Here is a 1948 Plymouth

The interior of the 1948 Plymouth.  The owner has purchased the necessary items to finish restoring the inside door panels, but it didn't arrive in time for this car show.   He has a little bit of restoration work yet.  But look at all the chrome on the dash and the radio!!  That radio almost looks like a juke box!

The owner of the 1948 Plymouth.  He is as old as his car, he says.   He bought this car in 1969 in New Mexico when he got out of the service.  It was a rusty thing, and a faded olive green color.   Roger has restored this car beautifully!

This is the 10 year old boy who is restoring this 1969 Datsun truck that somebody gave him to "tinker with".   At 10, he is quite the mechanic already.  He lives in the country near the church and actually drove this truck to church today!! (Yep, here in rural prairieland, driver's license and brakes are "optional"!)  He is working to put brakes on this truck.  Good thing there are only lonely gravel roads around here!  Cody is SO proud of his truck!  He is definitely a future "car show guy".

Cody and his friend Jameson dreaming of the days when they can drive for real.........i.e. legally!  Pretty much every country boy already starts driving farm vehicles when they can reach the pedals!

This 1977 GMC was restored by a 15 year old!  It was a total rust bucket when he got it.  Look at it now!

Not sure of the vintage on this one, but it is from the muscle car era.

I think this is a 1977 or 1979 Corvette.  It was a big attraction for the boys in the parish.

This 1977 Pontiac LeMans is owned by a girl in the parish.  She helped to restore it, with help from her Dad and brother.

A nice trip down Memory Lane don't you think?