The Toledo Jeep Fest on Saturday kicks off downtown at 11 a.m. with an all-Jeep parade along Huron Street. Once the hourlong parade ends, the 800-plus Jeeps will be on display across a number of blocks. Some of the rarer models will be on display inside the SeaGate Convention Centre.
The event is free to attend. Registration to participate ended last week.
In addition to the Jeeps and Jeep-related retailers, there will be food trucks and live music at Levis Square and a stage off Jackson Street near the United Way building. There will be an indoor beer garden at SeaGate and an outdoor beer garden near the Jackson Street stage. Children’s activities are planned at Imagination Station, while several films about Jeep’s history will be screening inside SeaGate.
Local nonprofit Heroes in Action will help to put on a military ceremony to honor veterans and the men and women who built the Jeeps that went overseas during World War II. Jeep-related artifacts will be on display in the Edison Building.
Mercy Health and Dana Inc. are title sponsors for the event, with each contributing $25,000. Another major sponsor is Georgia-based Jeep parts wholesaler Omix-ADA Inc. The company is bringing 10 vehicles, including three prototype Jeeps built for the military in 1941.
The event ends at 6 p.m.