It was Jim, our mechanic’s turn to pick the fundraiser this year. Jim did some research and chose St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital as it is one of the few organizations who apply a very large percentage of monies raised directly to research. Not to mention all the important work they do to help individual children going through difficult medical problems. My son-in-law, Clayton, suggested the band. The Follow is an up and coming Christian rock band whose music you have probably heard on the radio. They were kind enough to take time out of their busy schedule to play for us. By now I’ve learned to be pretty laid back about having enough volunteers to help sell raffles and assist with registration. Folks just step up and ask what they can do to help. We are so very blessed!

This was an extra special year for us. Not only were we having our 6th annual motorcycle show, but we also turned it into our 5th Year Anniversary party! I had been monopolizing the decision for where the donations would be going to so Jan stepped up and stated that he would like to make the choice for this year. A good friend’s wife has MS, therefore Jan wanted this year’s fundraiser to go to The Multiple Sclerosis Society. We had a lot more going on this year and started making plans much earlier in the year. We contacted all the organizations and asked them to come up with carnival type games to entertain the crowd. We had a burn out pit that year and the Discovery Channel Bike built by Gypsy the first woman participant. West Plex 100.7 provided a live broadcast early in the day with “The Beau & Katy Show” with music from Stray Bullet for the rest of the day. I believe it was an extra hot summer day, but everyone still came out and fun was had by all.

www.dasasports.org

I worked for a short time with Kelly Behlmann the founder and Executive Director of DASA. This connection is what prompted me to call and see if they would be our recipient for our fundraiser. I almost picked a different fundraiser this year but was pulled to DASA. I think God had a hand in it because not only was Kelly thrilled to accept our donation, but DASA was holding an Olympic event that year and was in need of extra funds. It worked out beautifully. Jeez Laweez provided the music that year. This was year five of our annual show and by now I had a set group of organizations that I can count on every year to come out and support us. One gentleman in particular, Dennis with Broken Chains Chapter CMA helps us out every year to clean up the lot the day before the show. What a blessing! It always comes down to the wire and just when I think “Oh my gosh, we still need to clean the lot!” Dennis shows up with other members and they get to work without asking for anything. As a matter of fact, I come out ahead with, not only a clean lot, but with prayers for a successful day to boot!

For those of you that don’t know, I am an occupational therapist working within the pediatric realm, mostly in the schools. At the time I had several high school students with developmental delays and one of the goals is to assist them in getting ready to transition from school to the work force. Village of the Blue Rose is a great little bed and breakfast and restaurant between Clarksville and Louisiana Missouri off of scenic Hwy 79 (for reservations call 573-242-3464 or 573-242-3539). Village of the Blue Rose employs adults with developmental delays providing a loving work environment and housing for those that may not otherwise find employment. Right up my ally! By year three I had a wonderful volunteer staff that took a lot of stress off the preparations and wondering how was I going to pull off another event. . . with volunteers of course! Music was provided by The Big Easy.

Jan and I had been on the Bikers for Babies ride in 2005 and were planning on going again in 2006.  Tiny, as many of you may know, was very heavily involved in Bikers for Babies.  Tiny had stopped by the shop quite a few times earlier in the year and really talked up all the good that the March of Dimes was doing   for infants, so Jan & I thought it a worthy cause.  Entertainment was  Ben Wah Bob.  More time meant more goodies were collect as door prizes.  I tried being more organized with my volunteers and found our micro managing does not workJ   A valuable lesson that has served me well in the following years.

This first fundraiser was thrown together fairly quickly as we had only been open since March of 2005. I knew Cassie from both Sacred Heart Parish and Troy Buchanan High School. Cassie had a brain tumor and we decided to do what we could to raise money to offset the cost of her rising medical bills. Cassie was a vibrant young lady always with a smile to give. She will be missed. A fellow parishioner, Dale Hollis, provided the entertainment as a DJ that first year. Our new vendors sent us some goodies for giveaways. We contacted local organizations and asked them to come and set up tables and had a few vendors. I found out what a giving community we live in and how valuable my volunteers are. And thus was born the annual Chariots of Fire Customs LLC Motorcycle Show!