ESCANABA — A beloved car show and swap meet will occur for the final time this month.

The event, presented by Chatfield Machine/NAPA and the Krusin’ Klassics Car Club, started in 1985. The club will host its final Fun Run parade on May 30 with the car show and swap meet scheduled for May 31.

“The weekend of May 30th and 31st, 2025 will be a memorable weekend for the Krusin’ Klassics Car Club of Delta County. They will not only be hosting their 40th annual Fun Run Car Show, but it will also be the final show for the organization,” the group said in a press release.

The group was founded in 1985 by a group of car enthusiasts who decided to host a large-scale car show every year at the U.P. State Fairgrounds.

The two-day event kicks off Friday, with registration for the parade beginning at 9 a.m. in building 5 at the fairgrounds. That continues throughout the day until the lineup for the parade begins at 6 p.m. at Ludington Park.

Cars featured are vintage, antique and special interest cars or trucks from the year 2000 or older.

The parade will cruise along Ludington Street, heading to the park at 7 p.m. Then the automobiles split to head down Stevenson Avenue, where, officially, the parade concludes, but many of the vehicles will continue to Gladstone and stop at Lakeview Assisted Living.

“We roll through Escanaba and a lot of them go over to Gladstone because there’s people out there waiting for us, and we do a run through the Lake View Assisted Living because they have the elderly people out there waiting for us to come through and it’s nice to have a bunch of cars pass through there too,” said Krusin’ Klassics President Mark Caswell.

After the parade, the participants meet back at the fairgrounds at 8 p.m. for dancing until midnight. The dance will feature music by Grand Design.

In addition to the dance, there will be 50/50 raffles, a silent auction, and a 1980s-themed costume contest for cash prizes.

On Saturday, the fun continues.

“We open the gates at 8 a.m. for the car show, and we’ll have a bounce house and stuff there for the kids. We’ll have different activities going on, all kinds of food vendors, parts vendors, a huge swap meet; the swap meet has gotten bigger and better every year. Then we’ll have a band (3 Wheel Drive) playing on the midway at the intersection outside from noon to 4 p.m.,” Caswell said.

The public is encouraged to purchase raffle tickets — $5 per ticket or five tickets for $20 — for this year’s grand prize, a 1984 Hurst Oldsmobile. Caswell said ticket purchasers do not have to be present to win.

Additionally, the first car the group ever gave away in 1988, a 1941 Mercury Coupe, will be on display.

“I think that will be a big attraction,” Caswell said.

Money raised by the club goes to charities and organizations throughout Delta County, including Bay de Noc Community College, the Salvation Army, St. Vincent de Paul, Walk for Warmth, Delta County Cancer Alliance, the robotics and baseball teams of local high schools, and more have all received donations raised by past fun runs.

“Over the course of the 40 years, we’ve probably given away over 50 cars, and probably close to three-quarters of a million dollars back to the community in donations,” Caswell said.

“I always like to say we’re community driven because they’re the ones that support us, so we support the community.”

The event certainly grew over the years, as the first year started with roughly 20 cars. The following year, 100 cars participated, and in year three, the event moved to the U.P. State Fairgrounds, where participation increased dramatically.

“Right now, we average about 650 (cars). I’m hoping for 800 to 1,000 this year because I’ve been getting a lot of interest from people who want to be at the last one,” Caswell said.

Caswell, who has been with the group since its inception in 1985, explained why the group is calling quits after 40 years.

“We are all getting older and it’s getting harder to get volunteers to help out on the show,” he said.

However, the area’s car show culture will live on under a different moniker: The Ludington Street Cruise, put on by the Escanaba Downtown Development Authority (DDA).

“Not only will the parade remain in downtown Escanaba, but the show itself will be moved downtown. Ludington Street will be lined with Classic Cars and displays.

In the meantime, the Krusin Klassics are getting ready for their final show and are excited to go out with a bang,” Caswell said in a press release.

He said the final event is bittersweet, as the group can be proud of what it accomplished in the past 40 years, but it will miss putting on the event for the community.

“We’re going to retire from that whole thing, and we’re taking the Krusin’ Klassics with us, but we’re also going to stay together as a group, and we’re going to continue dispersing funds till we have none left to disperse,” Caswell said.

Members of the group will stay together, traveling to different car shows in their classic cars.

“We’ve made a lot of great friends over the years, and we’re hoping that they all go up and give us a good farewell,” he said.

For more information, visit www.krusinklassics.net.