Charity Event has raised $550,000 for Southern Oregon Children

Presented by Rogue Valley Street Rods, the 2015 Southern Oregon Rod & Custom Show takes place February 14 and 15, 2015 in four buildings at The Expo at the Jackson County Fairgrounds. Entrance fee is $8 for adults 13 and over, $2 for kids six to 12, and free for kids five and under. Hours are 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday, February 14, and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 15. All proceeds will help local children with medical disabilities served by the Child Development and Rehabilitation Center (CDRC). Since 1978, the event has raised more than $550,000 for these children and their families, including $25,000 last year.

The 38th Annual Southern Oregon Rod & Custom Show will feature some of the best street rod builds on the west coast. Invitations were mailed to car builders who have recently finished a newly built custom. This resulted in an exceptional display of customs. The show will feature cars from Washington, Oregon, California and Nevada. One of these is a 1941 Willys owned by Brian Leetch of Vancouver, Washington. This red coupe with yellow flames has won over twelve Best of Show awards. It has also won the Good Buys Pick at Pleasanton CA and Puyallup WA and Best in Class at both the Portland and Roadster shows. There will be an additional six Willys from out of state.

Local car owner, Tom Sherwood, will have his recently restored 1965 Shelby Cobra on display. This car has an original CXS4369 chassis, aluminum alloy body and is powered by a 427 sideoiler. It was originally built by Shelby Automobiles in 2007. Tom took the time to have it restored to the 1965 specifications. Lots of effort was spent in obtaining original parts for the restoration. The assembly was done by Jerry Weichers, a Shelby restoration/historian expert. It is part of a continuation series that began in the early 2000s with both small block and big block motors. The big block cars would be referred to as CXS4000 series and titled as 1965 model cars and sold by Shelby Automobiles, Inc. of Las Vegas, Nevada. A small series of Cobras would have an aluminum body built in Poland by the same people that Kirkham used for the alloy Cobra replicas. This car has an alloy body.

On Saturday night from 6:00 to 8:00 a special Valentine’s Day event will be held with free heart shaped cookies and Sweetheart drawings for dinner, breakfast and lodging for two at Callahan’s Lodge, one night lodging for two at Bybee’s Historic Inn and a Hellgate Excursion river trip for two.

Other highlights include:

  • Car club displays from the Mustang Club, Rogue Valley Classic Chevys, Contemporary Autos of Southern Oregon, Rogue Valley Corvettes and Stray Angels
  • 70+ vendors with the latest auto-related products
  • Kids’ activities including valve cover races and a coloring contest in which every entrant gets a prize and a chance in a drawing for a free bicycle
  • A drawing for $100 cash in each of the three vendor buildings
  • Raffles for a 350 Chevy motor from John Keller Motor Supply, a turbo 350 transmission from Get It In Gear Transmission, a turbo 350 transmission from Pete’s Transmission, $500 in groceries from Thunderbird/Food 4 Less, $500 in tires from Advantage Tire and a one of a kind quilt
  • A Car Corral where cars for sale and unfinished car projects can be displayed for a fee of $20.00

Awards will be presented for Best of Show, People’s Choice, Club President’s pick, Best Individual Display, Central Point Mayor’s Choice, Best Club Display, Best Motorcycle, Child Development and Rehabilitation Center Choice, George Bailey Award and Long Distance Award

 About the Child Development and Rehabilitation Center
The CDRC is part of Oregon Health & Science University and treats kids with diagnoses primarily of cerebral palsy or developmental delay, as well as spina bifida and craniofacial disorder. It is the region’s most comprehensive resource for children with special needs and helps empower children, teens and adults to lead the most productive and rewarding lives possible regardless of their disability or health needs. Southern Oregon Rod & Custom Show donations go to services that insurance and CDRC’s general operating funds cannot cover, including braces and special shoes, computers, software, wheelchair repair and conversion of vans for wheelchair lifts, modified bicycles, horseback riding therapy and speech therapy. Last year Rogue Valley Street Rods’ donation helped serve 42 families.

About Rogue Valley Street Rods
Rogue Valley Street Rods, organized in 1975 and now over 150 members strong, is the oldest active club of its kind in Southern Oregon. It was one of only two Northwest auto clubs to earn Eagle One Industries’ 2001 and 2009 Award of Merit recognizing work toward community involvement and charitable causes.

For more information, visit www.roguevalleystreetrods.com.