By Portia Williams
It was a wonderful turnout for The 40th Annual Portsmouth Labor Day Car Show, hosted by the American Legion James Dickey Post 23 on Market Street Monday. Before 10 a.m., 70 cars were already registered and in place, and they kept coming, with three remaining hours of registration still to go.
Market Street in downtown Portsmouth was decorated with a multitude of cars, bikes and other vehicles on Monday. Dave Pack of the American Legion James Dickey Post 23, said he attributes the huge turnout to social media and patriotism.
“We are having a car show for veterans with the American Legion James Dickey Post 23. We’ve had this Labor Day Car Show for 40 years, but this is the first year where the American Legion is being presented,” Pack said. “Thank goodness for social media. We’ve done a lot of Facebook, and people have called, and the phone has been ringing off the hook, and they’ve sent us Facebook messages that they’re going to be here. When it’s veteran-related, and for something patriotic, people like to get involved, and that is just the American way.”
In addition to cars, he said the show also encompasses other types of vehicles.
“We have bikes, trucks, newer stuff, older stuff, and a little bit of everything. It is all for a good cause,” he said.
Funds raised from the event will be allocated toward assistance to local veterans.
“We are fundraising for local veterans in the Scioto County area,” he said. “The American Legion is very much involved in doing a lot of support for disabled veterans, veterans without jobs who are looking for employment, and doing different projects in the community, that’s what they do. So, we are raising funds today.”
The event will also include the distribution of awards, including the Jimmy Saddler Memorial Best of Show Award.
“We are going to be giving away a three-foot trophy for the Best of Show, it’s going to be the Jimmy Saddler Memorial Best of Show which memory of Jimmy Saddler, who was with the American Legion, and just recently passed away,” he said. “We are also going to have 75 trophy awards that we’re giving out.
He said they expected success with the car show, and that the event was a community effort.
“We knew we would be successful today, and we were hoping for good weather, and we were blessed with that,” he said. “We are really excited about the turn out right now, and look forward to a great day. We’ve roasted two hogs, and we’ve got pulled-pork barbecue, that the Ladies Auxiliary is cooking over here, with chips and drinks and beverages. It is just a downtown community effort, and we are really proud of it.”
Reach Portia Williams at 740-353-3101, ext. 1929, or on Twitter @PortiaWillPDT.
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The 40th Annual Portsmouth Labor Day Car Show, hosted by the American Legion Post 23 was a great success
