One of the most anticipated annual events in Greene County, “50s Fest & Car Cruise,” hosted by Waynesburg Prosperous and Beautiful, will be hitting the streets Saturday at 10 a.m. The theme of 1950s and 1960s-style vehicles has been the foundation of this event since its start 18 years ago. The event now has music provided by WANB, door prizes, games, food and all kinds of family fun, and continues to grow every year.
WANB host, also known as the Greene County Greaser, Doug Wilson, is the co-chair of the 50s Fest & Car Cruise committee and has been involved with this tremendous event since the very beginning. He has had the opportunity to watch this car show grow with each year.
“As a fan of the music and lifestyle of the 50s and 60s, I do my best as the DJ/emcee/host to keep that flavor,” Wilson said. “[The event] is exciting for me, to see people coming out just enjoying a good time in downtown Waynesburg, admiring the vehicles and just finding out how nice this area really is.”
The name, “Greene County Greaser,” comes from Wilson’s first days at WANB when a colleague would refer to him as a “greaser” in a derogatory context based on his “oldie” fashion style and music taste. Wilson, as a fan of the 50s and 60s culture, was flattered by the term “greaser” and decided to take the name up as his official local nickname while working the oldies radio show.
Wilson does a live show from the Greene County Courthouse steps and plays music primarily from the time period, while also having an emphasis on car songs. The car show, being the main attraction, brings people from long distances to Greene County to participate in showcasing their vehicles. There are several vehicles from Ohio, Harrisburg and even a lady from England who takes her vacation to partake in the car show.
“It’s universal. The music from that era, everyone can identify with. [There are] songs about having fun, songs about falling in love, songs about cars, and everyone can identify with all of those things,” Wilson said. “Even if you don’t know the difference between a carburetor and a spark plug, you can admire and appreciate the vehicles that are there and the hard work that the owners have gone through to either restore or maintain those vehicles.
Preparation for the car show starts around April where committee members make sure everything will work.
Co-Chair Danielle Crooks will be joining Wilson on the committee for her first year in the position. Crooks commends the volunteers who continue to help the event happen each year.
“I’d say a lot of it is the hard work of the volunteers. They’re very passionate [about cars]. Most of the people on the committee have cars at ‘50s Fest.’ They’re very passionate about the idea – the idea of having something fun for the community that doesn’t cost anything,” Crooks said. “Those volunteers – they work very hard. They spend months leading up to it getting ready and they’re there the day before, stuffing goodie bags for everybody that comes through, and they want to make sure it succeeds – and it does.”
Along with volunteers, local businesses in Waynesburg and Greene County are the primary source for the paid sponsorships, and thus help keep the event running with their contribution.
“I’m really just hoping that we have a really beautiful day so a lot of cars can come out and everybody just has a good time and enjoys it,” Crooks said.