The weather was just ducky for an annual Jeep show in Lower Burrell on Sunday.
But as common a sight as little rubber ducks are on Jeeps, they’re not likely to be found on the 2001 Jeep Wrangler Sahara that was the pride of Marine Corps Sgt. Vinson A. Pelisari Jr. and now cared for by his father, Vinson A. Pelisari Sr., of New Kensington.
Pelisari said his son, who was 24 when he died in November 2020, wasn’t into the duck thing.
“He would have hated to have ducks on here,” he said. “We can’t keep them on this one. They keep falling off. I think they’re getting slapped off.”
The Wrangler was among around 80 Jeeps that were displayed on the grounds of the Lower Burrell Veterans of Foreign Wars post for the third annual P-Dawg Jeep Show, sponsored by the Sgt. Vinson A. Pelisari Jr. Memorial Fund and AKV Back the Blue.
That’s up from about 50 that were at last year’s show, said Ron Balla, president of AKV Back the Blue.
The show supports veterans charities and local food banks. Proceeds from the past two shows went to Homes for our Troops, America’s VetDogs, The Special Forces Trust, Knead Community Cafe, Project SEED and the VFW post.
The show featured a variety of Jeeps — the old and the new, the ones that go off-road and others that never do.
“As long as it’s a Jeep, it can be entered in the show,” Balla said.
Pelisari said his son loved Jeeps, and was just starting to work on the Wrangler he used in Yuma, Ariz. Since his son’s death, Pelisari’s efforts to finish it have included putting a lift kit on it, a body lift, and tires. The covers on the front seats are made from new fatigues that the sergeant never wore.
“He loved to go four-wheeling. He took it out all the time,” Pelisari said, adding that he now takes it off-roading and to shows. “He’d be mad if it was just sitting in the garage.”
Prizes were awarded for Jeeps that were stock, modified, vintage and the “creampuffs,” meaning those never taken off-road.
The dried-on mud that coated the front end of Robert Seman’s 2016 Jeep Wrangler like paint made it clear his was no creampuff.
“It’s a lot cleaner, normally,” he said, adding that it was all shined up for the Lower Burrell Memorial Day parade. “It either needs to be really dirty or really clean.”
Seman left the mud on from Saturday’s adventures because he didn’t have time to get it cleaned.
“I just love getting out in the woods and spending time on the trails,” he said. “It’s a great community as well.”
While some Jeeps have dashboards covered with ducks, Eric Schumaker, of Allegheny Township, is like Sgt. Pelisari — not a big fan. He did have a few displayed on his 1994 Wrangler, but that’s it.
The idea behind the ducks was that when someone saw a Jeep that they liked, they’d leave a small duck on it, which the owner would display like a trophy, Balla said.
But, now, many are buying ducks for themselves to decorate their Jeeps.
“When it started it was cool. It’s just gotten out of control,” Schumaker said. “The ones I keep are the ones I’ve been ducked at,” meaning the ducks others have left behind for him.
Schumaker said his Wrangler was nothing but a frame when he bought it 10 years ago.
“This is literally a ground-up build,” he said. Why? “So I could build exactly what I wanted.
“It actually goes in the woods,” he said.
There was a lot of yellow on Jeanne Whitling’s 2008 Wrangler, but instead of ducks, it was Minions — the henchmen from the “Despicable Me” and “Minions” movie franchises.
The deco draws about as much attention as the fact it’s right-hand drive. Whitling worked in U.S. Postal Service rural delivery, where carriers often drive their own vehicle, converted to right-hand drive to reach mailboxes easily. When she retired, she kept the Jeep.
“I wanted to bring smiles to people,” said Whitling, of Oil City. “This is the way I did it.”
While Whitling came from a distance to attend the show for the first time, Dave Marchese just hopped over from Brackenridge for his second. That’s mainly because he avoids driving his 1946 Willys CJ2A too much over 35 mph.
“This is the only time it comes out,” he said. “These weren’t made to drive on the highway. They were designed to go anywhere off-road.”
When Balla first suggested having the show, Pelisari said he was nervous that no one would show up. As it’s grown each year, that feeling has been replaced with gratitude.
“The people are just so awesome. Grateful is what I feel more than anything,” he said. “I still miss my son very much. To see everyone come together in his memory is a little bit comforting.”