- Posted on Monday, October 2nd, 2006 at 2:33 pm
The Drive for a Cause
By Jillian Beauman
Guest Blogger
As all-American as corn on the cob and apple pie, the Chevy Silverado Drive for Farm Aid took off again through the country’s heartland after departing Nashville on Friday. Passing fields of grain and the cities of Louisville, Cincinnati, and Columbus, The Drive headed to Pittsburgh for its fourth and final benefit concert.
Along the way, The Drive made a pit stop for lunch and malts in Kentucky and I had the opportunity to speak with Heritage Tour member Megan Boyd. Megan was riding with a 1968 gold and white Chevrolet C10 with a 396-cubic inch big block, courtesy of Motor Portfolio, a classic car dealership in Canton, Ohio. Megan, who has a degree in applied automotive engineering, restores classic pickups in her spare time. Megan’s current project is a 1948 GMC pickup featuring a 401 Buick nail head out of a 1963 Buick Riviera. When she isn’t looking under the hood of her truck, Megan participates in organized drag races in her 1968 Chevy Camaro.
“I come from a Chevy family myself,” said Megan. “Chevy is a brand that I use and love, and it was awesome seeing all of the excitement generated from the unveiling of the new Chevy Silverado.”
I then spoke with Heritage Tour father-and-daughter team Stan Gabridge and Jennifer Kernaghan of Richmond, Mich. The two were riding in a 1953 Chevy 1/2 Ton, which Stan bought at a show and sale in Charlotte after viewing hundreds of vehicles for purchase. The truck’s gleaming yellow finish instantly caught his eye, and since then Stan has enjoyed driving the vehicle in a local cruiser club. He is also the proud owner of the 1937 green pick up which was along for the tour. Stan has lived for more than 30 years in the farm belt of Michigan, and took The Drive’s mission close to heart.
“All of my neighbors are farmers, so to be a member of this tour raising money for Farm Aid – it truly has been an honor.”
Later that night, The Drive arrived at the SouthSide Works concert venue in Pittsburgh and promptly met up with the second tour caravan, which had been in Indianapolis the day before. The tour members who had been in Indianapolis had attended a live concert with a crowd of nearly 4,000 in attendance at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where the group was even able to make tracks on the Speedway. In Pittsburgh, the joined tour members met with Pittsburgh Steelers Sean Morey and Clint Kriewaldt and viewed another great performance by chart-topping country group Montgomery Gentry.
As the band rocked out, Top Hat John, the Heritage Tour leader, worked the crowd while Rachel Fowler, Farm Aid representative and Willie Nelson’s granddaughter, collected monetary donations and canned goods. It was an evening of family and friends coming together to focus on the importance of buying produce from local family farmers. With a big turnout in Pittsburgh, The Drive packed up, ready for the final leg to Farm Aid in Camden, N.J.
To see more photos, check out our Flickr album.
Leave a Reply
(If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.)