Car show celebrates son’s legacy, supports young adults with disabilities

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

A father’s love, a son’s memory and a heartfelt mission are coming together in an event aimed at honoring people with special needs and the programs that support them.

“Andrew’s You’ve Got a Friend in Me Car Show” will take place Sunday, June 8, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at North Iowa Area Community College (NIACC) in Mason City. The event is free and open to all.

Car registrations can be made in advance or from 9 to 11 a.m. on the day of the show, but no vehicles will be turned away that day.

The show’s goal this first year in what is hoped to become an annual event is to raise awareness and raise funds for the NIACC “EDUCATE” program, which, according to the college, is “committed to fostering academic achievement, career development, and personal independence in an encouraging and inclusive environment” for persons with intellectual disabilities.

The car show is the brainchild of Eric Kacer of Mason City, whose son, Andrew, was born with Down syndrome and a serious congenital heart condition. Andrew died in 2021 at age 24.

“I had a couple of Mustangs that I bought that was kind of our father-son thing that we enjoyed, … he enjoyed it,” Kacer said.

NIACC’s EDUCATE program is a unique two-year initiative for students with intellectual disabilities, Kacer said.

“It’s a four-semester program for people diagnosed with behavioral challenges or special needs or it could be somebody with a disability,” Kacer said. “They’re the first in the nation for a junior college to have a program to do something like this, and nobody really knows about it.”

The car show will include food trucks, a silent auction, information booths and music from Mojo Productions. The silent auction will include athletic memorabilia with Iowa ties including donations from Dan Gable, Kirk Ferentz and Kurt Warner.

Kacer said he’s trying to get a donation from Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever, and he spoke to someone from that team’s owner, Pacers Sports & Entertainment, but the contact may have been too late to get something for this year.

Judges for the car show will be people with disabilities, picking their favorite vehicles.

“It’s just to honor these kids and help them and bring recognition to them,” Kacer said.

There is no entry fee for participants or spectators, but donations are encouraged.

“We’ll have green buckets at the show that people can give whatever they feel to help with that,” Kacer said.

The show is being sponsored by Mike Molstead Motors of Charles City, NIACC, 43 North Iowa, Mojo Productions, One Vision and Special Olympics. Booths from 43 North Iowa and One Vision will offer information on their services related to employment, housing and other support for individuals with disabilities.

Kacer and his wife live in Mason City. He works at Golden Grain Energy, and his wife, originally from Charles City, is an instructional coach in the Mason City School District.

Andrew attended Mason City schools and was loved by everyone who met him, Kacer said.

“Everybody knew Andrew at school and he was always happy, and all the teachers enjoyed Andrew. He just kind of brought a spark to everybody he met,” he said.

“Andrew’s You’ve Got a Friend in Me Car Show” is named after the Randy Newman song from the “Toy Story” movies, in a nod to Andrew’s favorite character.

“He always had Woody with him. I mean, ever since he was like 3 to 24, he always had a Woody doll with him. Woody went everywhere,” Kacer said.

For example, several years after a family church picture had been taken they were looking at it more closely, “and there was Woody peeking up from the bottom of the frame.”

In addition to Down syndrome, Andrew was born with Tetralogy of Fallot, a combination of related problems with how the heart develops that makes it harder to pump blood properly, often causing low oxygen levels.

“When Andrew was born, he had a bluish color,” Kacer said. “And so, like three hours after he was born, they air-flighted him to the University of Iowa” for his first surgery, he said.

As an adult, Andrew became the first patient at the University of Iowa to receive a wireless pacemaker from Medtronic, in November 2021.

“It was like a 12-hour operation, but they got it in,” Kacer said.

The surgeon who worked to get Andrew the pacemaker was the same doctor who had helped in his initial operation as a baby. Dr. Ian Law, who back in 1997 was an intern at the University of Iowa, is now director of pediatric cardiology at the University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital.

Despite the hospital’s efforts, Andrew continued to decline.

“He fought a collapsed lung, a lot of things, high temperatures, and then finally, his body couldn’t take it anymore. And that’s OK. He’s in a better place,” Kacer said. “That’s kind of the message, too, that in life you don’t really count your blessings. Just know that life happens and you just do the best you can and the good Lord watches over.”

The car show will be held June 8 on what would have been Andrew’s 28th birthday.

Kacer said a number of communities are coming together to make the car show possible, including Clear Lake where he is from, Charles City where his wife is from and where the head of the NIACC EDUCATE program is from, Mason City where they live now, and even some southern Minnesota communities.

“It’s bringing people together and recognizing these folks and giving them a night to shine,” Kacer said.

For more information, to register a car, or to make a donation, visit andrews-friends.org.