Well, is it a sign of the times (financial problems or complacency) that the Classics on Kent has been cancelled? In an article in the Kawartha Lakes This Week (May 14th, 2015), the General Manager of the Lindsay & District Chamber of Commerce, Christine Baily, stated "while it's a great event for the community, it's not one that benefits our members greatly". She went on to say that "there's a lot going on right now"...Mayoral luncheon (now that's important), annual golf tournament (wow!). She did point out that although the show is cancelled, the Rolling Thunder Parade to the A & W will take place as scheduled on Saturday, July 11th. It'll be very interesting to see how many people will come out for a classic car parade when the big event has been cancelled. She mentioned the lack of benefits to their members (local businesses) - I know for a fact that lots of people shop the downtown (granted, mostly the wives) but they also go to the local restaurants to eat, drink, etc. She did say that the "main organizer of Classics (was ) unable to continue this year, it was the responsible thing to do." That, I think, speaks to the more pressing problem for all car clubs - lack of member participation/volunteerism. As we know only too well in our own club, there is a small, dedicated group at the core who continue to stand for office, volunteer their time, etc. Even AMO International is struggling with getting enough members to become board members, volunteer as officers, etc. I have felt for some time that we are seeing the beginning of the end of car clubs as we know them, unless we get an influx of new/enthusiastic members. I'm not sure of the reasons why the younger generation isn't interested, except that perhaps social media via the internet is too seductive. It's too easy to sit in your home or in a restaurant (when you should be talking to those around you) to surf the web, make contact with people, buy and sell, etc. While I believe this generation appreciates our vehicles, there's just not the desire to join a group of like-minded people. Sad situation - all too soon, the very people who can provide an excellent history of the cars, tips on how to fix/maintain them, will be gone and these beauties will go to junk piles. I'm not sure what the answers are - just sayin'...
Barb van der Veen
AMO+ Newsletter/Website Editor