April 28th hosted the 31st Annual Porsche Only Swap Meet. This year Mother Nature was kind to Central Pa. Region and offered sunshine and temperatures in the high 60’s. The good weather brought record numbers of Porsche cars and buyers. With over 1000 Porsche sport cars on the grounds of Hershey. I can safely say we had the most expensive and exclusive black top on the East Coast, if not the globe.

After years of very poor weather (rain and lots of it) the swap date was moved one week later to April 28th. As odds would have it, the original third Saturday date, the weather was super. The question was, would our new date be this lucky? As the days went by the weather forecast did not look good. Friday set up brought light rain, but not enough to halt set up. Saturday, heading to Hershey at 4:00am from Carlisle was a challenge and dangerous. The fog was so thick that 35mph was top speed. At the swap parking lots, the fog allowed 30-40 yards of visibility. This might be a problem!

As the volunteers started arriving at 5:30am the fog started to dissipate and by the time we open the gates at 6:30am, the sun was starting to burn through. Over the next hour, the bright orange sun turned into blue skies with white clouds. Swap 2007 was going to have good weather—about time!

Over 600 vendor spaces were filled with every item you can imagine. The buyers and vendors kept the lot busy with parts filling cars throughout the day. The Swap sponsors were busy all day and when I spoke with them, the response was, “2007 made up for 2006!” A welcome phrase. The raffle included many items, including a set of tires. The Annual Swap T-shirt was sold out by early morning, a complete opposite from year 2006/the year of the Rains! The Porsche Corral was filled by early AM, then made larger, filled again, made larger one more time, filled again, and finally maxed out.

The weather helped the People’s Choice Concours. Eric Wahlberg had an excellent turnout for the Concours with the proceeds benefiting the Four Diamonds Fund. The quality and variety of the show cars was amazing this year—a lot of eye-candy. The 968 Group offered over 50 examples of this fine example of German engineering. A sight to see...sharp!

People want to donate to a good cause, and that was evident at this year's Porsche Swap meet. Millersville University student volunteers who helped to collect donations at the gate proclaimed, “Porsche people are cool and very generous.” The students were amazed when one attendee handed them a $100 bill to help send a child with cancer to Camp Can-Do. Later in the day, another attendee stopped by the “Carts for Parts” area and wrote a $100 check to help this great cause.

Shoppers were appreciative of the “Carts for Parts” service noting that “renting a cart is a no-brainer. I have help getting my big parts to my car and I am helping a good cause at the same time.” Many shoppers stated that our Swap is really an upscale event because we have this type of service. Some noted that they will count on using the service next year.

Miriam Witmer, Porsche club member and Celebration for Life President, reported, “With the money C4Life raised last year for this worthwhile charity and the proceeds from the gate and “Carts for Parts” at the Swap, together we are able to send eight children with cancer to Camp Can-Do this summer! It feels so good to be a part of this kind of effort. People are starting to recognize that our Porsche club steps up to help when there is a need, and we can all feel good about that.”

Celebration for Life extends an invitation to all Porsche club members to our other upcoming events: 4th Annual C4Life Butterfly Release, 2pm on Sept.1 at the Hospice Labor Day Auction on the West Lampeter Fairgrounds; 5th Annual Tee off for Tom: Tom McCarty Memorial Golf Tournament, Sept 7th at Four Seasons; 8th Annual C4Life Picnic and Auction Sept. 29th at the Lancaster Liederkranz

Celebration for Life is a non-profit fund-raising organization supporting cancer related research, education and patient services. The partnership between C4Life and the Porsche club specifically supports children with cancer. For more details about C4Life events, please visit www.c4life.org

Each year the Swap grows and continues to be one of the major events for Porsche owners. Year 2008 is set for April 26th, so mark your calendars now. As this nationally recognized event continues to grow, Central Pa Region will continue to raise the bar for an outstanding event (just keep mother nature on our side).

During the year when I’m working on the event, I often wonder will this year beat last year and the answer is yes. Why? Volunteers from Central Pa. Region! I want to thank all the volunteers that made this year’s event so successful. From the team leaders to the shift volunteers, each person’s efforts made the event run smoothly and professionally. Great Job and I look forward in working with all you in 2008.

Reminder, the Swap Party for the volunteers will be this summer/fall and invitations will be mailed. Look for the volunteer list published in a future Sprecher and club web site for your name, such that you receive the party invite.