BUCYRUS — For 25 years, hundreds of people have made their way to Bucyrus for the annual Graffiti Cruise in June. The car show was in jeopardy of being canceled forever when organizers of the event recently made the decision to retire but then, the Bucyrus Lodge 68 of the Fraternal Order of Police stepped up to take it over.
Jim Hedges, Galion City Council member and owner of Memory Lane Auto Museum, was asked to be a part of the organizational committee.
“They asked me to help out and I said yes. The car show is an important event to Bucyrus and to Crawford County. Many Galion residents participate in the show and even more attend the car show every year,” said Hedges.
Hedges turned his passion for classic cars and creating cars that have been featured in movies into a business in 2005 when he opened his classic and movie car museum in downtown Galion.
“It is great to be able to do something you love and enjoy for a living. The car show is another piece to that,” said Hedges. “I am really happy they asked me to be a part of it.”
The car show began in 1992 and was founded by the 4 C’s Car Club (Crawford County Customs and Classics) and in recent years, has drawn as many as 600 to 800 classic vehicles and their owners to Bucyrus.
The show features a “cruise in” that features all classic cars participating taking laps up and down the main drag of town, Sandusky Avenue.
“We are keeping the cruise-in part of the car show. It is one of the only car shows that have it and people really love and enjoy it,” said Hedges.
The event, now dubbed Cruisin’ with the Cops, will officially begin at 2 p.m. on June 10.
“A lot of people come in for the show the day before and start cruising,” Hedges said.
Registration for car owners will be $15 and those who register early will be given a T-shirt. Cars allowed into this year’s cruise must be 1991 and older.
Many local businesses are sponsoring the event including First Federal Bank and Shawn Ridgeway of Dillinger’s and Breezzy’s Pizza, who recently donated $1,200 to the event. Proceeds from this year’s event will go towards the many charities and community events the FOP sponsors.
“The people who have been in charge of the car show for the past 25 years were very organized and did a great job. It is our goal to continue to put on a great show,” said Hedges. “The event is fun for everyone and brings business to Crawford County.”
The FOP plans to create a Facebook page for the event, and will create a link to that page from the city’s website. For more information, call the police department at 419-562-6767.
