I don’t know whether this has been reported, but the prominent owner of a gas station museum has been named grand marshal of the cruise at the International Route 66 Mother Road Festival in Springfield, Ill., this weekend.
The Springfield State Journal-Register reports today:
Bill Shea, owner of Shea’s Gas Station Museum, 2075 Peoria Road, will be the grand marshal for the 2011 Route 66 City Nights Cruise.
The cruise begins at 6:15 p.m. at the Capital City Shopping Center, 3095 S. Dirksen Parkway, and heads south on Dirksen, west on Stevenson Drive and north on Sixth Street into downtown Springfield.
“We’re so excited to honor Bill Shea as this year’s grand marshal during the Route 66 City Nights Cruise,” said Kim Rosendahl, president of the festival board. “Bill is a world-renowned Route 66 icon, with visitors coming from all around the world to see Shea’s Gas Station Museum. We’re are so lucky to have him right here in Springfield.
“As the festival celebrates its 10th anniversary, we thought it was the perfect time to honor Bill.”
Shea, a veteran of the D-Day invasion of Europe in 1944, has been an outstanding ambassador of Route 66 for many years. This honor is deserving.
The festival, incidentally, is marking its 10th anniversary. It started as a part of a National Historic Route 66 Federation gathering, which moves around Route 66’s eight states. But it was so successful, Springfield decided to make it an annual event.
What a well deserved and fitting honor of Bill. Congratulations from all of us hare at Henrys Ra66it Ranch