Charity Car Run Heightens Love of Children, Cars, Community

RIO GRANDE – Members of the Low & Swift Car Club pulled out of a Route 9 parking lot Aug. 16 at 9 a.m. and drove in a procession to The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) to deliver toys, money, and to visit with patients and their families.
Fifteen vehicles participated in the 2015 CHOP Charity Car Run that raised more than $1,000 and brought with it four boxes of toys.
“CHOP is one of the best children’s hospitals on the East Coast,” said Andrew “Drew” Spaulding, president of Low & Swift. “We wanted the children at CHOP, as well as their parents, to know that they are not alone.”
The Low & Swift Car Club was created by Spaulding and a few friends in 2013 and has grown into a group of more than 100 members with branches in other states.
In Cape May County, the 20-30 local members meet twice a week on Tuesdays and Sundays at 6:30 p.m. at the restaurant’s parking lot.
“We are more than a car club,” said Spaulding. “We are ordinary people with a passion for cars. When we meet, we talk cars and we talk family. If any of us need help, whether it’s taking out a motor or moving, we help one another.”
The members of this family-oriented car club also want to create a safer environment for children of the community. Although their cars may be loud and their windows tinted, they have morals, said Spaulding.
“We don’t do anything that we wouldn’t want our children doing when they get older,” said Spaulding, who has a 5-year old and a 1-year old. “We want to create somewhere for the children to go and learn about cars. It’s about taking the negative energy out of the streets and putting it to good use.”
The CHOP Charity Car Run was initiated by the secretary of Low & Swift and quickly adopted by the group. Through word of mouth and with the help of local businesses, funds were raised to benefit the hospital and the children who go there for care.
Event members travelled to Philadelphia together, left together, and, on the way home, stopped at a restaurant and ate together.
“It was really nice,” said Spaulding. “When we gathered last night at our regular 6:30 p.m. meet, we were all still wearing our car run shirts. We did this as a family. ”
Low & Swift is planning to make the charity car run an annual fundraiser. In the meantime, this car club family is preparing for its next charity event, a breast cancer walk at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, Oct. 4.
To contact Heather Burns, email hburns@cmcherald.com.