January 8th, 2019
Welcome to 2019. With the holidays behind us and The Drive Home IV on its way to opening the North American International Auto Show, we’re focused on the Automotive Heritage Awards and the newly-minted Automotive Heritage Foundation.
We created the Automotive Heritage Foundation to be the charitable, non-profit entity to present the AHA and other projects. By Laws and Board of Directors are in place. We’ll be adding a few more board members over this year. The non-profit status will allow usgrow our events and insure their sustainability. Part of the mission of the AHA is to support our non-profit partners, and that is enhanced with the AHF.
Alex Buchan is finishing our large Lifetime Achievement Trophy with tall walnut base that will be on permanent display at the LeMay – America’s Car Museum in Tacoma, Washington. The wooden base will display brass plaques for each of the previous IAMC Lifetime Achievement winners along with the AHA winners in perpetuity. An installation ceremony is being planned for the spring.
- Entries are now being accepted for the Automotive Heritage Journalism Competition. Works produced for consumption during calendar 2018 are eligible. What have you produced this past year that should be honored? See the Website for categories. Veteran journalist, Gary Witzenburg, will again lead the judging. Entry deadline is May 31st. Judging wraps up June 30th. Awards will be presented during the event at the Concours d’Elegance of America at St. John’s on July 28th. [We expect many more entries this year and will be recruiting judges and to help Gary manage it all. If you’d like to help, let us know.]
- The National Automotive History Collection at the Detroit Public Library has signed on again to present its Future Collectible Vehicle of the Year Award as part of the AHA. We hope to be working with the NAHC on some other auto heritage projects as well.
- Brian Baker, director of the Leland Chapter of the Society of Automotive Historians, and his team of judges from within the ranks of renowned auto designers will again choose a Concept Vehicle of the Year from the 2018/2019 auto show season.
- Jim McCraw, former Lifetime Achievement honoree, will lead our AHA Lifetime Achievement Award. He will assemble a team of respected jurors, partly from among the ranks of former winners of the award, to make the selection for this important honor. As many of you know, the late Tony Swan managed this award last year just months before he passed. Peter Egan was the honoree.
SPONSORSHIPS
Many of you will be seeing sponsorship pitches from us in the upcoming few months. Our Automotive Heritage Awards project is an opportunity for a business or organization to get its name and message in front of a unique audience of journalists, enthusiasts and others who are part of the auto heritage community, and be a part of the Concours d’Elegance of America at St. John’s. In addition to sponsorships of specific elements of the four competitions, we just added a “Supporter” level that includes two Concours tickets that allow early entry to the show field and a reception with the AHA team at the Brembo tent. Get details on all the sponsor levels at: https://autoheritageawards.com/sponsors/sponsorship-opportunities/ and watch for our sponsor pitches.
Or . . . better yet . . . contact us directly:
Steve Purdy,stevepurdy3@gmail.com, 517-655-3591
Angie Bournias,angieabb@aol.com, 313-670-6682
