Dealing with a Tragedy

When we started this blog, its primary purpose was to be a fun project. Life sometimes throws a tragedy at us that must be handled. We are still reeling from the tragic car accident that claimed the life of Delmer and Annette's fourteen year old granddaughter, Jessica Davis, on March 18. No drugs or alcohol involved. Just two girls coming home from church on a gravel road.

As friends and fellow club members, we can be there to offer our support, friendship, sympathy, love and prayers as we minister to their needs at this time. We do that without reservation. "I'm so sorry," seems so inadequate at such a time. They are both in such a state of shock they can barely function. I think they are on auto-pilot. We can not even begin to know how we would cope under the circumstances.

As I was taught in my college English Comp. class, I'm handling the shock by trying to write through the emotions. Please forgive this post if it seems to be a bit rambling.

My mother lost two sons in infancy. I know that she grieved long after their passing. When I asked her how she dealt with their deaths, she told me, "God needs buds in His bouquet as well as full-bloomed flowers." God chose Jessica to be in His bouquet at this time. We pray for God's angels to hold not only the family but all of us who are grieving for Jessica, in their arms and give us peace in our hearts.

We can not begin to comprehend God's plan in this tragic event. We can only trust that He is the Master and we are the servants. We trust that in His infinite wisdom that the passing of this young person will be to His glory.

"We know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose", Romans 8:28 KJV

What is in a Name?

Many people might be offended by the name "Rebel" Car Club. Don't get "all shook up". We have no dark, sinister political agenda. We are rebelling against is growing old quietly. We refuse to sit at home in our rocking chairs and recliners waiting for the kids or grandchildren to call or stop by. Not us! We are going to car shows and cruise nights almost every weekend from March through October. Sometimes to indoor shows in the winter.

We do charity events. Last fall we went on a toy run to collect toys for sick children. About eighty cars was involved. We left Claremore at about eight o'clock. Stopped in Pryor for a little while then on to Vinita. After lunch at Cowboy's, the run completed the circle back to Claremore. By the time it was finished, a large enclosed trailer was stuffed full of toys and games.

The pictures in this post are from that event. As you can see, even Elvis came.

We are rebelling against good cars and trucks being thrown away just because they have a few years and miles on them! Those "old cars" are a part of history and need to be seen and appreciated by everyone. Almost every child that comes to spectate at our cruise nights walks around in awe. When my grandson was about three years old, he would say, "Pick me up, Papa. I want to see. Wow! Cool!" Now that he is almost eleven, he is saying, "I wonder what kind of car Papa is going to build for me. I hope it's a Mustang". Oh, well. We love him anyway.

Beginning of Spring

On a beautiful March Sunday afternoon, a group of us Rebels met some other members of the club for lunch. With our tummies full (maybe a little too full) we drove to John and Mary's for a picture taking session and dessert. Getting the rides into the backyard, between the trees and out of the lake, was a bit challenging. But our Rebel guys was up to the task. No scrapes! No bruises! Just a cut, but Carroll's hand will heal without surgery this time.

The beautiful '69 Plymouth Fury III convertible is a black cherry color that goes deep down. The fabulous gold '70 Torino convertible is original unrestored. It has a glass rear windshield and a big trunk that holds all kinds of goodies when we go cruisin'.

The blue truck is a 1953 Mercury m100 that was built in Canada. A rare ride for this part of the country. The gray truck street rod is a 1948 Willys Overland. Used for several years to feed livestock, it had no fuel pump, just a tank on top and gravity flow.

Our '38 Chevy 2-door Sedan has a Mustang II front-end and a Pontiac Bonneville rear-end. Also, a 350 engine with a 350 turbo tranny. It is politically correct with paint colors from Lincoln and Chrysler on a Chevy. And last but not least is the sharp little golden rod yellow '55 T-bird. A real eye catcher in any environment.

Who are we?

We are the Rebel Car Club. We have members in the three states of Oklahoma, Missouri and Kansas. In general we are a bunch of empty-nesters that can now do what we enjoy. That is riding around in our old cars and enjoying the company and friendship of others. We host "cruise nights" on the fourth Saturday of each month from April through September. Other car enthusiast from the area come to enjoy being out of the house, music from the past and company of others. In October we have our annual car show. Last October we had over 200 entries. We were founded in 1988. Our "rides" will be posted when the pictures are taken. They range from original unrestored, restored, custom and street rods.