TO REVIEW THE ACTIVITIES OF THE NORTHERN CALIFORNIA DODGE BROTHERS AND SISTERS GROUP, PLEASE CLICK ON THE "NCDBS MEETS" BUTTON AND YOU WILL FIND DETAILS OF THE MAJOR EVENTS ATTENDED DURING THIS YEAR AND PAST YEARS. WE INCLUDE EVERYTHING FROM OUR KICK-OFF MEET TO THE LAST EVENT OF THE YEAR. For a quick synopsis of our latest activities, please click on "WHAT'S NEW" in the upper right hand corner of this page. TO SEE WHAT THE GROUP HAS PLANNED FOR THIS YEAR, PLEASE CLICK ON THE "Next Events" button.

NEXT ACTIVITY in 2010 -GALT OLD-CAR FESTIVAL

The GALT OLD-CAR FESTIVAL will be held September 25th at the MacFarland Ranch in Galt. For information, please contact the Galt Area Historical Society at (209) 745-0951. This is for Pre-WWII cars only and there will be a NCDBS Mini-meet. Please see Next Events for more information.

The Gatsby Afternoon will be held at the Dunsmuir Hellman Historic Estate sponsored by the Art Deco Society of California on Sept. 12. You may purchase tickets for $40 if you are an ADSC member, or $50 if a non-member in advance. Or you may purchase admittance at the gate the day of the affair for only $70 per person. For further information, please contact the ADSC at 415.982.DECO www.artdecosociety.org

PAST ACTIVITY in 2010 - THE GREAT GATSBY FESTIVAL

The GREAT GATSBY FESTIVAL was held on August 14 and 15th this year. The NCDBS was part of the Vintage Auto Display literally 75 yards from the shore of south Lake Tahoe. Our usual parking area was adjacent to the Pope Estate under the tall pine trees of the area. This was a "costume required" event where all participants (including volunteers and forestry personnel) were dressed in vintage clothing of the 1920's and 1930's. Besides the Vintage Auto Display, there were static displays of the Baldwin Estate, the Pope Estate, the Valhalla Boat House and the Valhalla Estate. There was a silent auction, Silent movies and a Beer and Wine Bar next to where a jazz band was playing. Following the closure of the Festival reviews on Sunday afternoon, there was the Great Gatsby Tea and Fashion Show. This year Deborah Rush presented a brand new fashion show "THE BEADED DRESS OF THE 20TH CENTURY". This was an event that should not have been missed by any of at the NCDBS members! The Tahoe Heritage Foundation was established to help protect and preserve the cultural heritage and natural resources in the Tahoe Basin through restoration, education and interpretation. Their website is www.tahoeheritage.org.

PAST ACTIVITY in 2010 - PENGROVE STEAMUP on July 10

The PENGROVE STEAMUP was held on July 10 at the Pengrove Museum. The NCDBS were represented by Donn Marinovich in his 1962 Power Wagon, Roger Gong in his 1925 Screenside, Tom Gong in his 1930 Straight 8 rumble seat coupe and host Amil Gehrke in his 1917 Touring car. Donn Marinovich and Amil Gehrke had spent Friday at the museum performing the last minute cleanup tasks required to have the museum open on Saturday. We did meet at Amil Gehrke's place and by 10:00 a.m. we motored our DB's over to the Museum and parked and be part of the festivities until 2:00 p.m. or so. During the time at the Museum, there were many inquiries regarding all of the NCDBS vehicles. We also met a few old friends like Charlene Hunter and George Stum in attendance. At about 2:00 p.m. Tom and Roger Gong headed directly back the the Gehrke abode to load up to trailer our cars back to West Sacramento. The engine from the SPRUCE GOOSE was running along with a multitude of other engines.

PAST ACTIVITY in 2010 - 4th OF JULY PARADE IN DANVILLE

The Annual Danville 4th of July Parade. was held on a Sunday this year! We all met at Gene and Vickie Stadelhofer's house in Alamo the morning of July 4th at about 9:00 a.m. Since the 4th fell on a Sunday, the parade did not begin until 11:00 a.m. A cup of coffee and a doughnut or two and then we will wend our way down to the staging area. At the staging area we decorated our vehicles, sat and waited for our turn (we were Unit 245) to enter the parade and thrill the throngs at the parade with a brilliant display of Dodge Brothers cars. This years theme was "Celebrating or Freedom". By the time we got onto the parade route, the temperature had risen to about 98 degrees - boy was it hot. A weird situation arose during this years parade. The NCDBS was split into two groups with marching units between the two groupings of Dodge Brothers cars. Once we had completed the parade route, we returned back to the Stadelhofer's for our usual BBQ and NCDBS mini-meet and be on our way home by 3:00 p.m. to enjoy the rest of the the holiday at our own homes.

PAST ACTIVITY in 2010 - SONORA ROUND-UP PARADE

The Sonora Round-up Parade was held the Saturday of Mother's Day weekend. So for anyone who is calendar-challenged - this means that the parade was on May 8, 2010. For some of us who live a little distance away from Sonora, we began at about 4:00 a.m. in the morning and arrived at the Marinovich mansion at 7:00 ready for a wake up breakfast burrito to get us going. After breakfast the group headed on down to Sonora from Columbia and the JS West Hardware store for staging. We had Jim and Louise Kirk driving a 1962 Power wagon, Kevin and Megan Kroon in a 1935 KC pickup, Steve Gray in a 1935 flathead V8 Ford pickup, Herman and Barbara Boone in a 1933 Baby Blue sedan, Tom and Elaine Gong in their 1930 straight 8 rumble seat coupe, Roger and Lynne Gong (with daughter Leah and Tyson) in their 1925 Screenside and finally Donn Marinovich in his award winning 1923 Screenside truck. The interesting part of this entire parade was that the Northern California Dodge Brothers and Sisters Group[/Region was the last entry in the entire Parade of 171 entries. By the time the NCDBS contingent rolled up Washington Street, the attendees who had watched some 3 hours of parade pass by them were thinned out or were in the process of folding there chairs away and heading home. However as true NCDBS troopers the group "sucked it up" and ran a great parade! Kudo's to all the the participants in this Parade!!!

The SPRING TOUR in the Los Angeles area was conducted the weekend of April 30, May 1 and 2. Press on the dbtour.pdf file on the top left hand side of this page and you will find all the information and details regarding this tour! The REDWOODS TO HOLLYWOOD TOUR based at the Airtel Plaza Hotel in Van Nuys, California. We drove our DB's to all the tour locations (but sadly not from Northern California to the LA area) and through the side streets of the Van Nuys/Los Angeles environs. Touring to the Nethercutt Museum in San Sylmar on Friday April 30, the optional MAGIC CASTLE dinner and shows, the Peterson Automotive Museum on Saturday May 1 and the Los Angeles Fire Heliport on Sunday May 2. This great event began on Friday April 30 through Sunday May 2nd. We had 8 people and 4 cars make the 400 mile (one way) trip from Northern California to the South Land. Donn Marinovich at dcmmld@wildblue.net or telephone (209) 533-3663 was the Northern California contact and Ken Sobel at ken.sobel@yahoo.com or telephone (818) 995-6865. was the actual host for the event (along with his wife Gloria.

The Kick Off and Planning Meet was held at Amador Valley Community Park in Pleasanton on March 28th. The Picnic was great and the Planning portion of the meet reminded people of the 2010 Schedule of Events. For more information please click on What's New" at the upper right hand of this page, or click on "NCDBS Meets".

As a reference guide, Donn Marinovich has put together the following List of reference materials.

Modern Publications Relating to Dodge & Graham Brothers Vehicles