Newsletter Editor, What Next?

By J. Pat McCann
Vice President, Publications

“Now that I took on the job of Editor our Region newsletter, what next? They said they would all help.” Now, here’s what you do.

• Make a list of names and phone numbers of all who said they would help and establish a committee roster.

• Set up a reporter’s list and break up areas of responsibility. For example: News and Events, Classifieds and Calendar, Legislation and AACA News, Feature Articles and Editorial, Printing and Assembly.

• Give each member a title and call on him or her each month.

• Develop an attractive cover that will make the members want to open it and keep it simple and easy to read.

• Everyone likes to see their name in print, so use as many club member’s names as you can.

Being the Editor of your Region newsletter is the most important job in any Region. In some cases, it’s the only means of communication a member has with the club because of work schedules, health, or other commitments. Try to inform these members what is going on. Someday their situation may change and they may become a very active member, at a later time. We have seen this happen many times and the Region/Chapter publication is what kept them as interested members. FINALLY, don’t forget to enter the AACA Newsletter Contest!

The Continuing Story of Young Adult Members Who are Helping AACA Into the Future

 By Earl D. Beauchamp, Jr.
Vice Presidents, Regions

I am a great believer in the importance young adults can play in the future of AACA. This year I have sought to bring you a couple of stories about such people. These are young adults who have stepped up to take an active leadership role in their Region or Chapter. I am hopeful that by printing these success stories I can encourage more young adults across the country to become really involved with the AACA and the lifetime of enjoyment it can bring.

Below, I bring you a story written by Nora Aftel, the young editor for the Historic Fredericksburg Region in Virginia. Many of us older people think that young adults today are only interested in building modified cars, but that isn’t so. Many, like Nora and her husband, Robert, have authentically restored their vehicle. In this case, Robert and Nora have a beautifully restored 1964 Buick Riviera. And, as in the case with Bruce and Di Wheeler, whose story I brought to you in an earlier Rummage Box, they have brought parents into our hobby and AACA. I think that’s great. So, without further ado, let’s read what Nora has to say about being young parents in AACA.

An Active Young Mother Tells Her AACA Story
By Nora Aftel

At the last Region meeting, I was asked to write an article for the Historic Fredericksburg Region newsletter, “The Magneto,” telling people what it is like to be a working mother and an active club member. My response was one of disbelief. So many of our members have lived this life. Why would there be any question? Nevertheless, I will do my best to describe how I got where I am today (and where that is).

I am a car nut by association. I knew nothing of this life before I met Robert. He and I met when we were in college. I knew way back when we were dating that he was a car nut, but I didn’t know what that meant. Maybe I should have guessed as I help him out under the hood of his cars, but I had no clue. Before we were married, Robert and a few friends bought a 1959 Pontiac Catalina sedan to “restore”. They ripped apart all the mechanics of the car, had the engine rebuilt, and really got the car running great! They even put a tri-power carburetor on it. But the rust was too great, so the car was never fully restored.

After we were married, and settled in Fredericksburg, Virginia, Robert and I became members of a small local car club. He started looking for a car that was in better condition. At a local pizzeria, he found an ad for the Buick. We went, we saw, we bought… But we also realized that the local club did not meet our needs. Its focus was on hot-rods and we were more interested in the original engineering and styling of the vehicles. We dropped out of that club soon after we found AACA.

Shortly thereafter, we had our daughter, then our son. I started to withdraw from the garage to address the new responsibilities in the house. Quickly, I found myself pulling away from Robert’s interests, our new friends in AACA, and our responsibilities as club members. But, I believe that if we are going to be members of an organization, we need to take an active role in it. So, I took on editing the Magneto.

I have been compiling this newsletter for 3 years now, and I really do enjoy it. I am not the only one doing the work, though. As you might guess, I am unable to attend most of the meetings. My parents, Robert, and I take turns attending meetings and watching the kids. Whoever is there takes the notes for the month. I rely heavily on my mother for the printing and mailing of the newsletters. Barbara Kendall helps me when my mom is unavailable. I just can’t do it all.

I hope that as the kids grow, I will be able to take on a more active role in the club. I would like to help at meetings, shows, and have a more active role in the future of the Historic Fredericksburg Region. I hope that Robert and I will be joined by others, who like us, don’t have the time right now to participate as much as we would like; but, will grow into a future leadership role as time passes. I look forward to a promising future with HFR and with the National AACA. Until then, I hope that the kids will sleep through the night and I’ll be able to finish each newsletter before the deadline.

I ask each of you, who are long-time members and/or leaders in a Region or Chapter to seek out and befriend younger people, many of whom have young children. Talk to them, wherever you meet them, and encourage them to join AACA. Young adults, bring in your youthful friends. When or as you can, we need and want you to accept leadership roles. You’ll be glad that you did……..Earl Beauchamp, Jr.

Bought an Old Car, Now What?

By J. Pat McCann
Vice President, Publications

How many times have you gone to an antique car show just to inspect other cars like the one in your garage that you are restoring? We have all done it, just to see what color the engine block is, or what kind of carburetor it has on it. Some of us take pictures to see what is correct and what is not.

Well, if you want to be sure, the AACA Library and Research Center has everything from owner’s manuals to repair manuals, from blueprints to wiring diagrams, from colored ads to paint chip charts – all the information you need to restore your pride and joy to factory correctness. Your AACA Library has it all, and is considered the best in the country for information on the motor car; it’s all available to the membership. All you have to do is contact your Librarian, Kim Miller, or stop in when you are in the Hershey area. You will be greeted by a friendly, helpful staff who will assist you in your informational needs.

Whether you are starting a restoration project or just researching a lost marque, the AACA Library & Research Center is the place to start. Your AACA Library is the perfect source for automotive articles for Regional newsletters. The Library is forever searching for new and exciting items to share with us all. If you have something you want in our Library, contact Kim

AACA Introduces the new sentimental Tour

By Earl D. Beauchamp
Vice President, Regions

Many of you may have already read, from the AACA Website, the news that the AACA Board of Directors approved a new National Tour at their recent Board Meeting in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. This follows trial tours in 2001 and 2002 that were successfully presented as Divisional Tours in Virginia and Kentucky. To those who attended those Tours and made them successful prototypes, thank you. The AACA Sentimental Tour will join the AACA’s Reliability Tour and Vintage Tour in supplementing the Founders Tour and the Glidden Tour^® as offerings for your enjoyment as members of AACA. These National Tours are set up as five-day Tours and represent wonderful vacation opportunities for you and your family.

While the Reliability Tour is for vehicles 1915 and earlier and the Vintage Tour is for vehicles 1927 and earlier, the new Sentimental Tour will be for model years 1928 through 1958. The new Tour represents another building block in AACA’s program to preserve automotive history and the appreciation of it, while providing maximum enjoyment to its members. So now, you can take a “Sentimental Journey” back to those days of yesteryear to enjoy driving the cars and trucks that provided wheels to America through the Great Depression, World War II, and on into post-War reconstruction and a time of new prosperity many call the “fabulous fifties”.

The Sentimental Tour will join the Reliability Tour as being offered every other year, on the even-numbered years. The Vintage Tour is held on the odd-numbered years as is the AACA-sponsored Glidden Tour^®. When AACA is the sponsor for the Glidden Tour^®, the eligible vehicles are 1935 and earlier. The AACA Founders Tour is offered every year. The eligible vehicles for it are 1936 and newer. Also available for hosting, each year, are Divisional Tours. These tours are normally shorter and more localized, with the sponsoring Region or Chapter setting the years of eligibility.

Hopefully the first National Sentimental Tour will be held in 2004. There are several Region’s considering sponsorship of the 2004 Tour, however, we invite your Region or Chapter, as well, to discuss hosting this Tour during 2004 or one of the succeeding even-numbered years to come. We would also like to encourage your Region/Chapter to consider sponsorship of one of the other AACA National Tours described above in an upcoming year. The enjoyment of showing off your own piece of America to fellow hobbyists from around our great country far outweighs the effort to be the host. Most recent Tours have drawn entrants from well over twenty States far and wide throughout America.

In closing let me thank you, in advance, if ever you are an entrant in one of AACA’s Tours, or part of a hosting Region/Chapter team. Contact John L. Walker, Vice President — National Activities for a National Tour application if your Region or Chapter is interested in hosting a Sentimental Tour.

AACA Regions/Chapters Presidents' Dinner

By Ernie Gauld
Chairman, Regions and Chapters Annual Dinner

What is the AACA Regions/Chapters Presidents’ Dinner? This is a dinner held each year at the annual meeting of AACA in Philadelphia. Presidents or their representatives from all of AACA’s Regions and Chapters are invited to attend this dinner that is paid for by AACA. Everyone has heard the expression there is no free lunch, which is true, but in this case there is a free dinner!

Seriously, this is an opportunity for the Region /Chapter presidents to network with their counterparts from other areas of the country. It is an opportunity to share what their clubs are doing and to get ideas from other clubs they can take back home to share with their members.

In late fall every current Region/Chapter president will receive a letter from AACA Executive Director Bill Smith informing them of this dinner that is held in conjunction with the annual meeting in Philadelphia. The letter informs them that if they cannot attend they can appoint someone from their club to represent them at this dinner. As I said earlier, this dinner is free for one person from each AACA Region or Chapter. A spouse or guest may accompany the president or representative but must pay for their dinner.

We have four Divisions in AACA. They are the Eastern, Central, Southeastern and Western. At the dinner we try to seat the presidents with other presidents from their same general area.

Since most clubs elect a new slate of officers at the end of the calendar year, quite often the outgoing president who has this letter does not pass it on to the incoming president. So please! If you are an outgoing president pass the letter on to the new president so your club has an opportunity to be represented in Philadelphia at the annual meeting.

I hope to greet someone from your Region/Chapter next February in Philadelphia.

A Ride with the Presidents

Party labels are meaningless when the President rides by. Sirens wail, police extend their arms to block the crowds...a flashing red light glimmers ...and then...whoosh...a block-long black limousine glides past in a flash. Every eye is fixed for a fleeting second…then it is gone.

Credit for practical use of motorcars in the Presidency goes to William Howard Taft. By 1909, the automobile had become a fairly reliable means of travel but Taft didn’t place all his confidence in the loud and cantankerous gasolene (1900 spelling) engine. He ordered a large White Steamer touring car AND a Baker electric runabout to back up the fleet of two massive Pierce-Arrow limousines. Earlier presidents were responsible for their own means of travel.

After the demise of Pierce-Arrow in the 1930s, the allegiance has shifted among Cadillac, Lincoln and Chrysler. President Woodrow Wilson’s ride in a Boston WW I victory parade probably marked the first time a President used a Cadillac. It started a trend as President Coolidge had a lavish 1928 Cadillac town car and Herbert Hoover sported around in a 16-cylinder model. For Franklin D. Roosevelt, Cadillac supplied two massive 1938 cars, nicknamed the “Queen Mary” and the “Queen Elizabeth.” These gargantuan cars measured 21.5 feet, weighed 7,760 pounds and had a full arsenal of ammunition. They hung around for years and were also used by Harry S. Truman and Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Roosevelt commissioned a custom-bodied Brunn model K 1939 Lincoln dubbed the “Sunshine Special.” It was the first car built to Secret Service specifications and, as the policy continues today, was leased.

Due to the enormous free publicity and high cost, Ford Motor Company and General Motors in recent years have unofficially split the honors of supplying presidential vehicles. In the early Fifties, a few Chryslers were selected. One of the most beautiful cars was the sparkling white dual cowl 1952 Chrysler Imperial that transported Dwight D. Eisenhower and Richard M. Nixon.

The image of John F. Kennedy’s motorcade weaving through Dallas’ Dealey Plaza is etched in our minds. As “9-11” has changed our lives, that dark Dallas day in 1963 radically altered presidential travel. Other than some minor plating of the “Sunshine Special” during WW II, all the official cars were naked of armor and protection.

While the nation mourned our 35th President, the blood spattered Lincoln was quietly returned to Washington aboard an Air Force C-130. Within days high level officials pondered presidential travel. It was decided to rebuild the 1961 Lincoln, known officially as “Car X-100.” The Warren Commission completed their work on the car within 8 days. On December 12th, it was placed in the experienced hands of limousine builders Hess and Eisenhardt in Cincinnati.

The broken windshield and soiled upholstery were removed. The body was lined with 3/8” titanium steel covered with nylon armor. The famous bubbletop, omitted because of the pristine Dallas skies, became a fixed glass and steel cover. The other glass became bullet-resistant and polyurethane foam coated the gas tank to prevent explosions. Beefed up tires and rims made driving possible even if shot. The weight increased over a ton. A special Lincoln V8 engine was tossed in the deal for the $500,000 price tag. Within 5 months, the elegant dark blue car glistened in the Washington sun… ready for service.

It continued to serve Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon but became a backup vehicle when a new 1969 Lincoln arrived. As if forgetting the lessons learned at Dallas, Nixon wanted a more open car. A hinged panel was devised so he could stand up -totally exposed- and wave! Internally, other improvements, such as two tons of armor plating, made it a luxurious personnel carrier dubbed a Lincoln!

After 16 years of devoted duty to four presidents and parades throughout the world, the Kennedy car was retired in 1977. Since it was leased from the Ford Motor Company, it rests silently in the Henry Ford Museum. Parents huddle around it with their small children and recount exactly what they were doing that fateful November 22, 1963 day.

For the George W. Bush Presidential Inaugural Parade, Cadillac supplied a spanking new 2001 DeVille Limousine. As it moved through the throngs of well wishers, the deep black clear coat finish spoke of authority and class. It was built “in house” by the GM Specialty Vehicle Group. Both the height and wheelbase are larger than its dealer-sold cousins. The seven occupants are cuddled in fine leather and fabric accented with wood. Mr. Bush has a fold down desk top with special interior lighting. The fender flags are softly illuminated with small flush mounted spotlights.

The car is a rolling command post with satellite hookups and the driver has the Cadillac Night Vision infrared object detection system. Other systems are highly classified, but it is known to have a 10-disc CD changer on board. No hint as to the discs included!

Harry S. Truman leaves the Key West Airport in his 1951 presidential
limousine. Compare the total lack of protection afforded the chief
executive 50 years ago!

(photo courtesy of Dave Cline collection)

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