MIDDLETON, N.S. — More than a hundred unique vehicles were parked on the grass at Centennial Park and Macdonald Museum June 15.
While it was called Middleton Lions Antique Car Show, it included some special interest vehicles as well – and for every entry, there was a story.
Take Ron Snow’s 1955 Buick Special. It’s a head-turner. He parked the red and white classic under the trees in front of the museum. It was Father’s Day weekend and his antique – above all others in the show – held special meaning. His wife gave it to him on Father’s Day 28 years ago. She’s long since passed away, but Ron will never sell that car.
While his wife is gone, Ron spots a couple who seem to take special interest in the old Buick and he urges them to hop in and see what it feels like. It’s a small gesture, but their smiles are as bright as all that chrome once they slide in on that big front seat.
Ron smiles too. He’s from Newfoundland but lives in Wolfville now. He recounts how he and his wife found the car in Calgary.
“My wife and I were scouting and we actually seen this car and I fell right in love with it and she asked me if I wanted to have it and I said yes. And she bought it for me 28 years ago for Father’s Day – June 16 of 1991. She passed away 20 years ago come July 29 of this year. She passed away of MS. That’s why I won’t part with it. I used to have eight of them, eight old cars, but this one was the best one.”
He thinks of his wife every time he sees the car. They used to drive it down to the States.“She loved it. I loved it.”
Jonathan Archibald, event organizer, said there’s a story for every vehicle. His Porsche sits among the other cars. To him it’s special because he bought it with a small inheritance when his father died.
Archibald said vehicles have come from as far away as Cape Sable Island, Halifax, and beyond Truro. But a lot of the cars were local.
“There is actually a really big local car scene,” he said. “This show is really becoming quite credible. It’s 13, 14 years we’ve been running it. It’s known. And they like the venue too.”
He said the main prize is the People’s Choice. “The crowd, the drivers. Everybody can vote on it,” he said. While there are a host of other awards, that’s the favourite – plus the Mayor’s Pick.
Besides being a big crowd pleaser in Middleton on one of the first warm days of the season, it’s also a Lions Club fundraiser with profits going back into community projects.
