Jim Moroz starts his day at five in the morning on the Sunday of the Father’s Day Show and Shine. He and the Seaside Cruizers volunteers are out in the parking lot putting up barriers, directing traffic, getting 500 cars into place. By eight thirty, they’re parked. That’s when everybody takes a breath.
I love that moment. The cars are in. The sun is up over Qualicum Beach. Somewhere in the distance, someone is admiring a restored ’72 Chevelle. And Jim Moroz – who has been doing this, in one role or another, for the better part of a decade — lets out a long exhale and thinks: we did another good one.
Co-host Dave Graham chatted with Jim recently for the PULSE Community Podcast, and I came away with a renewed appreciation for what it actually takes to put on a community event of this scale. The 33rd annual Show and Shine this Father’s Day weekend is drawing over 500 registered vehicles, participants from as far as Airdrie, Alberta and Friday Harbor, Washington, and somewhere between 15,000 and 20,000 visitors over three days.
Last year, the Seaside Cruisers donated $30,900 to local charities. The list Jim read off during our conversation included Arrowsmith Search and Rescue, North Island Wildlife Recovery, Haven Society and Eva Hilborn who at 99, runs a little operation called Wonderful World of Books. The club members vote on who to support. That’s community accountability in its most honest form.
There’s also a quiet challenge underneath it all. The club members are getting older, and Jim knows it. The goal now isn’t just putting on the show — it’s finding younger people to carry it forward. I hope they do. This event belongs to Qualicum Beach in the same way the tide belongs to the shore.
If you’re in the area on Father’s Day weekend, head downtown. It’s worth every minute.
Hear the full conversation with Jim Moroz on The PULSE Community Podcast at: https://bit.ly/S2EP32PulsePodcast
Peter McCully is a multimedia creator and podcast host based in Parksville, BC. https://mccullymedia.ca/category/blog/