Members of the Onalaska Volunteer Firefighters Association (OVFA) are once again preparing to host a fundraiser car show on Saturday, Aug. 9, at the Lewis County Fire District 1 fire house located at 1733 state Route 508 in Onalaska.
Up for grabs are bragging rights and 30 custom trophies welded together out of scrap car parts by a local artist who wished to remain anonymous. The winner of the firefighters’ choice award will also be featured on the shirt for the OVFA Car Show in 2026.
The Chronicle visited the fire house back in May and met with volunteer firefighters Oliver Jackson and Kathy Kassel to take a sneak peak at the trophies and learn more about the upcoming car show.
“It’s a cool event. The classic cars show up, patriotism comes together and the fire department comes together. It’s three things coming together, and it’s cool to see,” Jackson said.
Each car show they’ve held features a giant U.S. flag hung over the entrance to the car show, owned by Lewis County Fire District 1 Commission Chair Tim Miles.
“He bought it, and he pays to have that big lift come out and hang it up,” Kassel said. “He actually brought it back out for a bazaar too.”
The car show serves as a fundraiser for the department to get gear and equipment needed by the fire fighters. The past two years, they have raised over $10,000 with each car show, purchasing special washing machines and dryers capable of removing smoke and ash from firefighter gear and new gas detectors for the department's fire engines.
“Last year, 115 cars were here, and 110 were registered,” Jackson added.
This year, fundraising efforts will go towards purchasing new automated external defibrillators for the fire department.
Any remaining funds go toward OVFA scholarships for Onalaska High School students and helping put together holiday meal packages for those in need in partnership with the Onalaska Alliance.
“This year, we gave $3,000 out in scholarships to the students at the school. We focus on students that are going into the medical field, but if there’s not enough doing that, we pick somebody that needs help. That’s what we did this year,” Kassel said.
The gates for the fourth annual OVFA Car Show open at 7 a.m. for participants, and OVFA members will also be cooking up and serving breakfast then, too. Breakfast will be biscuits and gravy.
“Then we’re going to serve hamburgers and Polish dogs for lunch,” Kassel added.
Local vendors will also be set up for the car show for attendees to browse. The car show itself will officially run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., with trophies being handed out at the end.
This year’s car show will also feature a fashion show. While many car shows traditionally may also feature a pin-up girl contest where women dress up in pin-up outfits and sell raffle tickets, OVFA organizers want to keep their fashion show and car show family friendly.
“We want them to be modest,” Jackson added.
On top of the custom trophies up for grabs, the first 50 entrants to register will also get a custom dashboard plaque. To pre-register, contact Kassel at 360-520-9098 or email onycarshow22@gmail.com.
For more information, contact Lewis County Fire District 1 at 360-978-4182, or message the OVFA on its Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/OVFALC.
