Montecito Motor Classic

We were all “Runnin to Bunnin” Chevrolet Cadillac for a media event cocktail party to talk about the Montecito Motor Classic September 23 (9 am to 3 pm) that’s coming to Coast Village Road in Montecito. The evening’s honoree was that car guy named Dana Newquist.

Dana came from Chicago and after one trip to California as a teenager, he was hooked. As he says, “There were the Beach Boys, muscle cars, and the girls at the beach were nearly naked!” His first car was a happily rusty 1957 Chevy and he drove Route 66 to get to Riverside. Since, he has bought and sold hundreds of cars and presently owns 16. His wife, Andrea, and he have given names to all their cars.

Dana is involved locally in many ways: president of the Antique Automobile Club of America, Santa Barbara Region; trustee at the Murphy Auto Museum; co-chairs the Father’s Day Show at the Santa Barbara Club; Barker Foundation; Boys & Girls Clubs and more. Congratulations, Dana.

The current sponsor for the Motor Classic is the Armand Hammer Foundation. The proceeds will go 100 percent to three local organizations: Police Activities League or PAL, Santa Barbara Police Foundation (SBPF), and DRAGG (Drag Racing Against Gangs and Graffiti).

PAL builds positive mentoring relationships between teens, the police department, and community members through educational, athletic, cultural, and leadership development programs. SBPF supports our police department by offering financial assistance for officers injured or killed in the line of duty and others who suffer catastrophic illness. Second by purchasing equipment not provided for in the budget. Third is to provide financial assistance and access to counseling services for the police department and other first responders of the tri-County area. DRAGG is a program within PAL that provides an after-school automotive program for high school students. It’s an alternative to gangs and graffiti teaching responsibility and respect for others.

Besides good cocktails and canapés, there was Thom Bateman auctioning 2018 Montecito Motor Classic original artwork by the world-renowned Mark Stehrenberger. Mark works in Ventura and Switzerland. His conceptual car illustrations have been featured in more than 50 major magazines – and that’s only the tip of his credits.

Another car guy of note is Monte Wilson, who founded Cars & Coffee along with his wife, Maria. It began in 2010 with 15 to 20 cars and now has 100+ on any given Sunday. They outgrew several sites and are now at LaCumbre Plaza.

Organizer of the Montecito Motor Classic Dolores Johnson is heading into her seventh year. For more information, call Sharon Byrne at (805) 636-0475. Hope to see you there. It’s free and fun.