Netherland Church of Christ hosting its annual Labor Day car show, a chance for community fellowship and outreach.
Elder Jerry Jolley said the event began after fellow elder Ray Austin suggested using his passion for classic cars to connect with the local area. Jolley said the show has grown from approximately 40 vehicles in its first year to more than 100 cars that now fill the church parking lot.
“We just felt like it would help us reach out and meet new people in the community and just provide a place for some clean fun,” Jolley said. “Mr. Austin was very adept at classic cars and people who are interested in those types of collections, and he just felt like it would be a good outreach to the community.”
Jolley said the show features a diverse range of vehicles including muscle cars, vintage models, trucks, Corvettes, motorcycles, and even collector tractors. Jolley said the event attracts many returning participants, including several people from Byrdstown who have attended for four consecutive years.
“They maybe owned it as a teenager, and now they’re older, and they can savor memories of that particular car, especially muscle cars,” Jolley said. “They have bragging rights, and again, it connects them with their past and other people that are like-minded.”
Jolley said the event is free for all participants and includes trophies for categories such as best of show and the vehicle that traveled the farthest distance. Jolley said the church provides complimentary refreshments including hot dogs, soft drinks, and cookies to encourage camaraderie among attendees.
“It focuses on fellowship and community,” Jolley said. “There’s no fee for participating in the event, and we actually give away trophies to the one that’s come the farthest and best of show and people’s favorite.”
Jolley said the congregation finds it rewarding to host an impactful activity that allows people to enjoy themselves on the church grounds.
“I’m hoping that they’ll see that the folks at the Netherlands Church of Christ are loving people who, our motto or what we have in our hallway on a marquee is ‘Loving God and Loving Others,’” Jolley said. “So we want them to see that God-loving people can have fun and they want the community to know that they’re there for them.”
Jolley said the event is scheduled to run from 10:00 a.m. to noon on Labor Day. Jolley said the two-hour window is designed to provide enough time for fellowship while allowing families to enjoy other holiday activities later in the day.
“And that’s the common goal that we have, just to meet and greet people and let them know that we like people and want them to have a safe, clean place to have fun,” Jolley said. “We just want people to know that we want to outreach to our community and provide everybody an opportunity to just enjoy fellowship.”
Jolley said interested participants do not need to pre-register and can simply show up shortly before the start time to secure a parking spot on a first-come, first-served basis.