Automobilia car show revived by outpouring of support

Several months into planning the 21st annual Automobilia Moonlight Car Show and Street Party, Automobilia organizer Gary Carpenter realized he would be $12,000 short of covering the insurance costs. The massive show attracts thousands of car enthusiasts from around the country every year. After failing to gain any sponsorship, Carpenter started to fear the worst, and began making calls.

“I made an announcement to people coming from Phoenix, Dallas, Denver, Missouri, Little Rock and all these places. I called them and told them I’m canceling the show,” Carpenter said.

News of a possible cancellation spurred fans of the event to action.

Mark Love of Clutch Auto Restyling was one of the first to step up to find a solution.

“I went down to the store, just trying to get a number, an amount to figure out what we can do to keep it going,” Love said.

“We talked about doing some sort of online funding, and Alex (Hunt) immediately made a GoFundMe account, and we plastered it everywhere.”

Then the donations started coming in. In increments of $10, $50 and $100, the car show inched back to life. After two days, over $9,000 was raised.

“My wife came to me crying saying someone gave $6000,” Carpenter said. “It was unbelievable, the response from the people.”

The car show turned street fair dates back to 1995, when Carpenter and his wife, Lorita, decided to hold an appreciation party for their customers. What started out as a low-key get together eventually grew to be one of the largest car shows in the Midwest.

One band turned into seven stages, and the original 250 cars have since increased to around 1,000. Musical acts at this year’s event will include Across the Pond, Classic Cowboys, RKO Blues Band, Border Bandits, The Mobb, and Lady and the Tramps playing a variety of blues, swing, rock and country. In addition, the show will feature a DJ and an Elvis impersonator. Food vendors include Race Day Brats, Rita’s Italian Ice as well as funnel cakes and hot dogs.

One of the key aspects of the show, Love said, is the family atmosphere the Carters have fostered.

“He doesn’t make a profit. They’re not worried about vendors, they don’t want that. They want it to be a fun, enjoyable show,” Love said.

Carpenter thinks this will be the biggest show they’ve ever had: the show averages about 140,000 attendees.

But for Carpenter, the outpouring of generosity will make this year’s show extra special.

“It’s a happy thing for me, (it) makes me feel a lot better going into this.”

This story was originally published July 8, 2015 at 9:57 PM with the headline "Automobilia car show revived by outpouring of support."