See cool cars, buy a little merch, help Folds of Honor

By STU CLAMPITT
news@readthereporter.com

Last August, Folds of Honor held a no-sponsor golf outing that raised more than $180,000 for scholarships for families of fallen and disabled veterans and first responders. On Saturday, May 16, Folds of Honor’s ongoing partnership with Indianapolis Cars & Coffee is bringing a completely free car show to the Fishers Event Center, 11000 Stockdale St.

To give our readers a clear picture of what to expect, The Reporter spoke with Folds of Honor Indiana Chapter President Mike Daggett, U.S. Air Force Senior Master Sergeant E8, Retired.

Much like the no-sponsor golf outing, the Indianapolis Cars & Coffee car show has been designed to have exceptionally low overhead cost so all the money can go directly to Folds of Honor scholarships.

“These guys came to us five years ago and said, ‘Hey Mike, we want to do a Car Show. We want to raise money for you,’” Daggett told The Reporter. “And, of course, I’ll never say no, but at the same point I was like, ‘Okay, let’s see where this goes.’ The model they’ve done is they don’t charge any of the spectators and they don’t charge any of the participants, which is a weird model. A lot of times, to enter a car show, you gotta pay $25 to enter your car. They have gone completely organic with, ‘I don’t care what you drive. If you’re proud of it, bring it.’”

The money raised comes from vendors and donations.

“They’ll have maybe a dozen vendors there, and then they sell some merch, and then they’ll ask for donations,” Daggett said. “What they’ve done unique in the vendor space is when they talk to their vendors, they look at what the vendor does and who they’re servicing, and they don’t allow any competitor to that vendor to come in. The vendors are very loyal to the cause because they get a captive audience with this group. They get to set up a tent or a table and have thousands of people walk by for two hours. A lot of the vendors have their own cars, so they bring a car and set it up in their part of their booth and it generates a lot of conversion.”

The other thing that makes this car show different from almost all the rest is the focus on making it open to everyone who is proud of their ride.

“My dad and guys of that generation have their muscle cars, and even guys who are 50, 60 have their $100,000 muscle car,” Daggett said. “But some of the kids of today, they’re coming in in a Kia that they put a fancy exhaust on and they’re very proud of that because that’s the resources they have today, and that’s all they can do. What I love about this event is that kid gets the same opportunity to show what he’s proud of as the guy with a $100,000 muscle car. It kind of levels the playing field.”

The car show does not ask for an entry fee or offer prizes. It’s an opportunity to show off the car you are proud of – regardless of retail value – and support a great cause.

“Spend the day with other car people, networking with people who are like-minded with you and support a great cause,” Daggett said. “I think a lot of car shows are really geared toward a special niche. ‘Hey, this is the Corvette show, or this is the BMW show, or this is the late model show.’ Whereas this is, ‘Hey, if you like cars, there’s something here for everybody.’”

If you read this and wake up Saturday morning thinking you should take your car to this show, you can do that.

“Go to the website [indianapoliscarsandcoffee.org] and just literally show up at eight o’clock in the morning,” Daggett said. “There’ll be a sign that says spectators or participants, and you get to decide which one of those you are. If you think you’re a participant, then you’re a participant, no matter what you’re driving.”

Folds of Honor Indiana is known for its commitment to providing life-changing educational scholarships to spouses and children of fallen or disabled military personnel and first responders. Since its inception in 2007, Folds of Honor has awarded nearly 73,000 scholarships totaling over $340 million across the United States.

Indianapolis Cars & Coffee partners with local businesses to host car-related events that create a safe, memorable experience for all attendees. In 2025, Indianapolis Cars & Coffee raised over $65,000 in scholarship funds for Folds of Honor Indiana, and over the past four years, the organization has raised more than $250,000.

The money raised will go to needs-based scholarships to the spouses and children of America’s fallen and disabled service members and first responders, including police, firefighters, EMTs, and paramedics.

Learn more online at indianapoliscarsandcoffee.org.