Project Cars of the Mid-Atlantic
Mid-Atlantic Chapter supports the Second Generation:
Kelsey Kallapos' Y.E.S. Project Car
Remember years ago when you could buy a neglected MGA for just a couple hundred bucks? Was it in showroom condition? Hardly! Did it run? Barely! Was it fun to drive? Immensely! So how do we capture that experience and pass it down to today's young drivers?
Meet Kelsey Kallapos, an 18-year-old honor student from Clifton, Va. After helping her dad Keith restore his '58 MGA roadster a few years back, Kelsey fell in love with the classic lines of our little British cars and knew that it would be fun to drive an MGA of her very own. But when numerous searches on eBay kept turning up expensive runners or questionable project car cars in distant lands, she decided to go local and made up a flyer. "Help a teenager on a budget! Sell (or donate) your abandoned project car or any leftover pieces to an enthused youngster and free up garage space as a bonus!"
Members of the Mid-Atlantic Chapter answered the call and overwhelmed the young lady with enough parts and pieces – starting with a full chassis from member Larry Newman – to begin the restoration process. After Keith shared the story with Jon Rubel from the Eastern New York MGA Club during a conversation at GT-33, Jon also involved their membership in the process.
For the past year Kelsey has been collecting, cleaning and refurbishing the 1,001 pieces that will become her MGA. Metalwork, bodywork and painting will occupy this summer’s calendar with assembly slated for fall and winter 2010.
To show her appreciation for these generous and supportive folks, Kelsey designed a T-shirt featuring the octagon logo enclosing the word Y.E.S. - for Young Enthusiast Sponsor. On the back it also has an MGA vent grille with the motto "Shifting the Joy of British Motoring to the Next Generation." Each person that donates parts or service to Kelsey's project receives a T-shirt as a display of Kelsey's appreciation. Of course, the biggest thank you of all will be the smile on Kelsey's face next spring when she gets to drive her very own MGA!
