WASHINGTON – It’s a classic, muscle car-lovers’ dream this weekend at the D.C. National Guard Armory.
The 5th Annual Car Show and Swap Meet will run from Feb. 28 through March 2 with proceeds benefiting wounded servicemembers and their families in the D.C. area.
More than 140 cars from 1923 to 1980 cover the gym floor inside the Armory. The star of the room could be the gray and black Pro Street Camaro – designed with a sharpie pen.
Organizers hope all of the vintage cars will draw huge crowds.
“Driving a vehicle up here could be a benefit to the military and what they do in this county for the support they’ve given us for our freedom,” says Ron Pemberton, member of the Unity Thunder Car Club – the event hosts.
One of those wounded servicemembers who benefited from the outreach is Navy officer Jarrod Davenport. He has served in the Navy for 24 years including six deployments. He suffered head, back and shoulder injuries during a deployment to Iraq in 2011. He’ll retire from the military later this year with two college degrees.
“I graduate this summer from Ivy Tech Community College. And Colorado Technical University I graduate Summa Cum Laude in December,” he says.
Car enthusiast and famed sportscaster James Brown lent his decked out 1969 Chevy Camaro for the cause. He says the event is the least that can be done to help those returning home from war.
“When they came back and are faced with challenges about how to make ends meet. Those are real world things, so we wanted to take it beyond just lip service and be doing something,” Brown says.
Show hours are from 2 to 9 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. General admission is $10 and children under 12 enter for free. Tickets will be available for purchase at the door.
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