The Toledo Jeep Fest Organizers are excited about the huge response that they have gotten since they announced the August event that will celebrate Jeep’s 75^th Anniversary.  With their first major sponsorship secured, Mercy Health, who is providing $25,000 to help with the costs associated with this grand event, they are off to a great start.

Matt Sapara, Mercy Health’s vice president of advocacy and government relations says, “We’ve been successful in the community because of the people who worked at this site. It was a very easy decision internally to jump up and say we’ll be the first money in this.”

He continues on to say, “We celebrate our history. We want to celebrate the future and that’s really what this event is all about.

All of the details are still in the finalization stages, but so far this exciting event will include indoor and outdoor car shows, a parade, history displays, Jeep accessory vendors, lots of great food and plenty of music. The anniversary celebration is expected to draw thousands of people and Jeeps to Toledo and is slated for August 13th. Another great surprise is that the event itself is free to the public.

This is not just about recognizing Jeep, it’s about Toledo’s part in the success of the Jeep brand as well.  Jerry Huber, one of the co-chairmen of the event and as former Executive of Chrysler who served in Toledo as a plant manager for years says the daylong festival is going to kick off with a parade that will then transition into a car show. “We want to recognize Jeep and all of the employees over the years but we’d also like to recognize Toledo.”

Toledo and Jeep have been in partnership for 75 years, starting back in 1941 when Willys-Overland won the first full-scale production contract.

They went on to build over 368,000 Willys MBs during World War II, which contributed to making the Jeep brand what it is today.

The military had a need for a vehicle that was tough, lightweight and that had the ability to get troops and equipment across the battlefield quickly. Although Willys didn’t create the original design, they made notable improvements, including a torque engine.

Right after the war, the CJ-series vehicle came onto the scene and was then replaced by Wrangler. They are also responsible for building the cab-over Forward Control pickups, the Grand Wagoneer, which holds the title of being the world’s first luxury sport utility vehicle, and three different varieties of Cherokee.

The Organizers are hoping that they can have as many of the historic Jeeps as possible at the event. Mr. Jerry Huber comments about what they’ve done so far to make that a reality.

“We’ve gone out to some of the Jeep clubs, some of the military vehicle preservation groups and got them to block that date and asked them to come to Toledo and bring their vehicles. The perfect world would be to get one of everything built, but that’s a challenge.”

Additionally, there are discussions being conducted with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Jeep’s parent company, about possibly providing historic vehicles from the Walter P. Chrysler Museum that is located in Auburn Hills, Mich.

Although Fiat Chrysler declined to comment about the activities planned in Toledo, 75th-anniversary editions of all six models were released earlier this year. The company also played up its history in two Super Bowl commercials this past February.

Mr. Bruce Baumhower, president of the United Auto Workers Local 12 and a key event organizer, reports that community-wide, support has been good, with over 200 volunteers already secured. Some funds have already been raised and the details of the corporate sponsorship packages are being worked out and finalized.

“The support for this and the respect for the products and the people who build them reaches further than I’ve ever imagined,” Mr. Baumhower says. “We think people will be coming from adjoining states to enjoy this.”