'Peggy Sue's All-American Cruise' Rolled This Weekend - With A Very Special Cause: SEE PHOTOS

By Al Francis:

Like a broken-down car on a rural road, the annual Peggy Sue’s All-American Cruise appeared to be stalled but an event promoter pulled over to lend a hand -- and with the help of a local sponsor providing a new venue in Rohnert Park -- thousands turned out Saturday for the biggest car show in Sonoma County.

There were doubts that the annual cruise and car show, that has gone on for the last 12 years, would happen with the loss of a sponsor and with one of the co-founders battling cancer.

But both locals and the car community of Northern California rallied to have 620 pre-1977 classic cars register and participate under first foggy then sunny skies for the Cruisin’ for Peggy Sue Car Show & Cruise, to benefit co-founder Rich Williams, at the huge parking lot at Graton Resort & Casino in Rohnert Park.

Each year Rich and Peggy ran the Peggy Sue cruise and would select a charitable cause, such as cancer, Juvenile Diabetes, scholarship programs and even a Fallen Soldier Family to benefit from the proceeds of this wonderful event. This year, Rich needs the help as, following a long illness, he was diagnosed with Stage 4 Lymphoma.(GoFundMe link is here.)

Orhan Sarabi stepped up and providing his expertise with his company, True Grit Running, which puts on the Santa Rosa Marathon and other sporting events, to put on this year’s Peggy Sue event and help raise money to aid Williams.

After spending most of the day at the huge parking lot at Graton, where buses and semi trucks usually park, the car enthusiasts loaded up and headed north to Santa Rosa through Highway 101 and down Santa Rosa Avenue for the cruise portion through downtown, where more than 1,000 spectators were able to view the vehicles.

The event was popular with families, including dads with kids in tow and grandparents remembering the cars they drove in their youth.

For more info visit cruiseforpeggysue.com

Photos via Al Francis of NapaSonomaPhotos.com