Jessie Green
Every year we welcome new friends at Cat Jam...and this year, nobody made a bigger impression than Jessie Green. He and his wife Debbie drove in from St. Louis, MO in their stunning custom Cougar. This car had it all: custom hood, custom paint, beautiful flames, a thumping system, sweet wheels, and a full air ride setup. Absolutely everyone was enamored with the car, but also with Jessie and Debbie--some of the friendliest and most humble people you'd ever want to meet. They both had some adventures getting to town (and driving around town...and staying across town) but eventually they were able to stay at Red Roof on Saturday night and be with everyone else. I had the pleasure of having dinner with them on Saturday night at Buffalo Wild Wings. Our conversation touched on Jessie's early days of customizing cars, his plans for this car, his family and friends, his grandchildren, and his love for Debbie. I was so happy to be with such wonderful people for their first trip to Cat Jam.

Victor	Victor	Victor
Victor	Victor	Ray
Nate	Nate	Nate
Nate	Nate	Nate

We didn't know that Jessie's first Cat Jam would also be his last. Almost exactly one month from the day we all met him, Jessie passed away in a motorcycle accident in his native Missouri. To say we're devastated would be an enormous understatement. Jessie and Debbie touched so many people that weekend. We truly lost a great friend. We sent flowers to Debbie on behalf of their friends at Cat Jam and also sent a card from the message board. We want Debbie to know that we will not forget Jessie and that she is always welcome at our show.

You see, this show is not really about the cars. It's about the people that drive them here...the cars become secondary. And when something like this happens, when we lose a friend, when we lose an opportunity to be with that friend again, it's especially painful. We are reminded that cars come and go, but people--they cannot be replaced. We are already hard at work on plans to remember Jessie at CJ07 and we hope that, in some small way, we can show honor and respect to our late friend.

[ top ]