A Critter Cruise was held Saturday by the Ohio Car Shows and Cruise Ins Facebook group at Rocky Fork Lake to benefit the Highland County Humane Society.
Eleven cars and a number of pets were registered in the event that saw registrants follow a map to visit a list of places around Rocky Fork Lake and Hillsboro to visit and take photos of with their car or pet.
The event raised $255 and an array of pet and cleaning supplies to be used by the shelter. People traveled to the event from Cincinnati, Chillicothe, Washington Court House and around the area.
“We had one dog that actually got adopted while we were holding the event, and one boy came in and he actually got to walk a dog, but the dog kind of walked him,” said Max Sprague, who coordinated the event and runs the Ohio Car Shows and Cruise Ins Facebook Group. The group boasts more than 64,000 members around the state.
Sprague moved to Hillsboro from Northern Ohio in November and held the event at the request of his fiancee. He also recently held a car show in support of the Sugartree Ministry Center in Wilmington at her suggestion.
“I went over to look at the parking lot for the Humane Society, and they didn’t have a parking lot to hold a car show in, so I thought this way we have Rocky Fork Lake with all the sites around it, so we could go up there and set up little photo op spots and do a cruise around the lake,” said Sprague.
With the success of the Critter Cruise, Sprague is planning to hold the event again next year.
“I do want to thank Beechwood Pizza because they gave a discount to everyone who participated,” said Sprague. “They took their map and their number and they got a 25 percent discount on pizza.”
Sprague is planning to hold a local car show in support of POW and MIA families in September. “We are doing a car show, and we have three bands coming in,” said Sprague.
In October, Sprague plans to hold a car show in Highland County called Weddings and Wheels, and he will officiate weddings at the show. “I get probably a couple hundred women every year wanting a special car for their wedding,” said Sprague. “Last summer I was living up north and I said, ‘let’s try this,’ and it was a hit. We do vow renewals and weddings and they have all the cars to take a picture with.”
Reach John Hackley at 937-402-2571.
