My father’s life revolved around cars. Can y’all help me honor him in style?

Posted by valentinomarachino@reddit | askcarguys | View on Reddit | 39 comments

First off, I apologize if this is an inappropriate post.

My father passed this weekend and I’m devastated. He spent his life remodeling, tinkering with, drawing, dreaming about cars. You name it.

I am in the process of planning his celebration of life and I really want to make it something special. I thought about doing a car meet, since most if not all of his friends have their own project car(s). I don’t really know how to logistically make that happen for a celebration of life with lots of family and friends that would be expecting a more traditional ceremony.

I wanted to see if any of yall had any ideas? Maybe if you have thought about your own celebration of life and would like to share the idea?

Thank you all so much

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BudgetHelper@reddit

You are getting lots of good ideas for the immediate celebration, so here is a long-term idea for you to consider...

If your community college or state technical school has an automotive repair program, you could create a scholarship where students can write an essay and be awarded funds to help with tuition, housing, etc. It doesn't have to be a huge sum of money. I have seen lots of programs like this, focused on all different types of students, education paths, trades, etc. If you have the means to do it, this could be a lasting legacy that continues your father's love of wrenching.

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1234-for-me@reddit

Wonderful idea!

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SicilSlovak@reddit

First off, I’m really sorry for your loss. I bonded with my own dad over cars too, so I can only imagine what you’re going through.

That said, this is a INCREDIBLE idea. Being a car guy is 10% working on your car and 90% show and tell with friends and strangers.

First off, I’d recommend you reach out to /r/cars with this. Not only is it much bigger, they’re extremely proactive and supportive of their community, and can help you make something special.

That said, let me give you some advice right now:

1.  Pick a location carefully: A local park with a big parking lot, a church lot, a fairground, or even an old drive-in can be good options. Call ahead — tell them it’s for a celebration of life, and you might be surprised how accommodating people are.

Permit/Insurance (or not): Small informal meets sometimes get by without a permit, but if you’re expecting 50+ cars, call the city and check. The last thing you want is the event being shut down halfway through.
Combine it with a traditional ceremony: Start with a short, more traditional service — maybe at a hall or a church — then transition to a “car parade” or “show and shine” afterward. You can even have his car, or a display of his favorite tools, trophies, or drawings at the front.
Memory Lane: Invite everyone to bring a framed photo of them with your dad, or of a project he helped them with. Set up a “Memory Lane” table or board next to the cars where people can tell stories and share.
Cruise/Drive: If he loved driving, not just building, a memorial cruise could be beautiful. Pick a scenic route and drive in a slow convoy — it’s a moving tribute (literally and emotionally).
Music and Vibes: Set up a playlist of his favorite driving songs. (Classic rock, blues, whatever his garage tunes were.) Even better if you can tune into a local FM transmitter so the cars can play it.
Nice touches:
Stickers with his initials/car number.
Dash cards with his picture and a quote or memory.
Custom keychains of his project car
Social Media/Photos: Set up a hashtag if people want to post photos, and maybe print a few later for yourself or his closest friends.

If you post this in r/cars, I think you’ll get a ton more ideas, but even if you don’t, know that what you’re thinking is already really special.

A shortcut option could be reaching out to (or leveraging his car friends to do this for you) a local cars and coffee, cruise-in, etc to see about integrating your dad’s memory / memorial into a standing event (which would take a lot of the work off your end to set it up).

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