36th Annual M.A.R.C. Swap Meet at Friendly Ford

By John Emmering

Having rented space to sell some of my extra Ford parts that have accumulated in my garage, I decided to soldier on and attend the 36th Annual Swap Meet, amidst concern about the Corona Virus.  The event was sponsored by the Illinois Region of the Model “A” Restorers Club.  Early on Sunday morning, March 15, I met Pat Maroney inside Friendly Ford and we both set up tables to offer our parts for sale.

With all our items prepared for sale, Pat and I sat back waited for customers.  There were noticeably fewer vendors and the crowd was a little sparse compared to last year.  We also set up a recruitment station on our tables offering copies of the March issue Road Chatter with applications for membership in the Early Ford V-8 Club of America and our Northern Illinois Regional Group inside.  Several Early Ford V-8 owners who stopped by expressed interest in the club.

 Throughout the morning we were glad to see several fellow NIRG members drop by.  Jordon Beller & Judy Siegel, Tom & Xiaoyin Brecheisen, John Judge, Paul Levine, Ray McMahon, Roger Obecny, Gary Osborne, John Scheve and George Zulas came by to look for items they might need. Pat Maroney and I did some shopping of our own purchasing some original shop manuals covering our Ford V-8s.  There were noticeable health precautions being taken at the event and elbow bumps took the place of handshakes. It was an enjoyable event although under the cloud of the current health crisis.