By: Teresa LoPiccolo, GM Communications
DURAND, Mich. - Every third Saturday in August, 1.5 million people and 40,000 cars gather for the world's largest one-day automotive event: the Woodward Dream Cruise. What started in 1995 as a small fundraiser has grown into a 16-mile journey through Detroit's northern suburbs, celebrating the cruising culture that made Woodward Avenue legendary in the 1950s and '60s.
For 30 years, Robert Kinnison, a General Motors retiree, never missed one.
But this year was different. As August rolled around, Robert was too weak from his battle with prostate cancer to make the trip from his Durand, Michigan home. After 38 years at GM's Pontiac plant as a forklift inspection team lead, Robert's passion for cars had only grown stronger in retirement. Between him and his brother, the Kinnisons worked for nearly 80 years at GM.
Robert could identify any car's year and engine, but for him, cars meant something more. As his niece Jamie Kinnison, a GM product marketing communications specialist, explains, he loved how teamwork created something bigger:
"He loved that each vehicle built came out of so many hands. And now it's helping someone get to work.
Caption: Jamie Kinnison with her Uncle Robert Kinnison, whose 30-year Dream Cruise streak inspired a community to bring the event to his doorstep.
It started with a simple idea. With her family facing health problems, Jamie felt overwhelmed and powerless. And when she learned Robert had missed the milestone 30th Woodward Dream Cruise, something inside her shifted.
She woke Monday morning with a simple idea: get five cars to drive by his house.
Jamie posted on social media asking if any local classic car owners would be willing to drive past Robert's home. Within hours, her phone was overwhelmed with responses from strangers wanting to help.
Doubts crept in quickly. Jamie questioned what she'd gotten herself into. The logistics felt daunting, and organizing a mini-Dream Cruise in a residential neighborhood seemed impossible.
"I definitely felt like backing out," she admits.
But every time she considered giving up, she thought about Robert's heartbreak from missing his 30-year streak. That sadness lit a fire in her.
Pushing through
"I had to push through,” she said. “I had to make this happen for him."
And the moment kept growing. A local man reached out to Jamie, offering to coordinate the entire event by tapping into a community of car enthusiasts. Within hours, Jamie’s simple idea grew beyond anything she’d imagined. By Friday evening, more than 50 vehicles had gathered at Durand Plaza, a local strip mall – everything from 1920s classics to exotic sports cars.
Some drove hours, drawn by nothing more than a shared desire to support a stranger’s dream.
As the convoy prepared, Jamie worried it might be too much for her uncle. When she arrived at his house to surprise him with the news, she found Robert lying on the couch.
"I can't go anywhere. I'm just too weak," he told her, not wanting any activity or visitors.
She sat beside him, reminiscing on summers spent at his cabin and recalling having to schedule those summer trips around the Dream Cruise.
“It hurt my heart that you had to miss the Dream Cruise this year, so I thought I’d bring it to you,” she told him.
Caption: Robert Kinnison is presented with gifts as family gathers around during the surprise Dream Cruise event.
When Jamie explained that dozens of cars were about to drive past his house in his honor, Robert’s expression changed. Tears filled his eyes.
"I gently asked if he was okay with it," Jamie says. "He said he was, and that moment meant everything."
Something remarkable happened as the convoy prepared to begin. As she stood in the circle of 50 car enthusiasts, person after person approached Jamie with the same message: they needed this moment as much as Robert did.
"This wasn't just for my uncle," Jamie realized. "This was for all those people that needed to give."
Giving gifts
Strangers brought handmade gifts – a Red Wings clock crafted from car parts, model cars, team hats. As cars cruised past, Robert surprised everyone, rising to thank his neighbors with an energy his family hadn’t seen in weeks.
As her family faced difficult times, Jamie found hope in an unexpected moment. It taught her something powerful about community and how a shared passion could transform individual pain into collective hope.
Robert called it his "personal Dream Cruise." For the strangers who showed up, it became proof that genuine care knows no boundaries.
In less than a week, strangers became a team. United by a love of cars and a desire to help, they created something extraordinary from a simple idea.
Robert passed away peacefully two weeks later, surrounded by family. In his final days, he kept a framed montage of photos from the event beside his bed – a final, vibrant chapter that revealed how a lifetime of loving cars could spark an extraordinary moment of human connection.
"When you give,” Jamie reflects, “you get more than you receive.”
Teresa LoPiccolo is Senior Manager of Communications, Strategic Initiatives at General Motors. Comments or questions: news@gm.com
DURAND, Mich. - Every third Saturday in August, 1.5 million people and 40,000 cars gather for the world's largest one-day automotive event: the Woodward Dream Cruise. What started in 1995 as a small fundraiser has grown into a 16-mile journey through Detroit's northern suburbs, celebrating the cruising culture that made Woodward Avenue legendary in the 1950s and '60s.
For 30 years, Robert Kinnison, a General Motors retiree, never missed one.
But this year was different. As August rolled around, Robert was too weak from his battle with prostate cancer to make the trip from his Durand, Michigan home. After 38 years at GM's Pontiac plant as a forklift inspection team lead, Robert's passion for cars had only grown stronger in retirement. Between him and his brother, the Kinnisons worked for nearly 80 years at GM.
Robert could identify any car's year and engine, but for him, cars meant something more. As his niece Jamie Kinnison, a GM product marketing communications specialist, explains, he loved how teamwork created something bigger:
"He loved that each vehicle built came out of so many hands. And now it's helping someone get to work.
It started with a simple idea. With her family facing health problems, Jamie felt overwhelmed and powerless. And when she learned Robert had missed the milestone 30th Woodward Dream Cruise, something inside her shifted.
She woke Monday morning with a simple idea: get five cars to drive by his house.
Jamie posted on social media asking if any local classic car owners would be willing to drive past Robert's home. Within hours, her phone was overwhelmed with responses from strangers wanting to help.
Doubts crept in quickly. Jamie questioned what she'd gotten herself into. The logistics felt daunting, and organizing a mini-Dream Cruise in a residential neighborhood seemed impossible.
"I definitely felt like backing out," she admits.
But every time she considered giving up, she thought about Robert's heartbreak from missing his 30-year streak. That sadness lit a fire in her.
Pushing through
"I had to push through,” she said. “I had to make this happen for him."
And the moment kept growing. A local man reached out to Jamie, offering to coordinate the entire event by tapping into a community of car enthusiasts. Within hours, Jamie’s simple idea grew beyond anything she’d imagined. By Friday evening, more than 50 vehicles had gathered at Durand Plaza, a local strip mall – everything from 1920s classics to exotic sports cars.
Some drove hours, drawn by nothing more than a shared desire to support a stranger’s dream.
As the convoy prepared, Jamie worried it might be too much for her uncle. When she arrived at his house to surprise him with the news, she found Robert lying on the couch.
"I can't go anywhere. I'm just too weak," he told her, not wanting any activity or visitors.
She sat beside him, reminiscing on summers spent at his cabin and recalling having to schedule those summer trips around the Dream Cruise.
“It hurt my heart that you had to miss the Dream Cruise this year, so I thought I’d bring it to you,” she told him.
When Jamie explained that dozens of cars were about to drive past his house in his honor, Robert’s expression changed. Tears filled his eyes.
"I gently asked if he was okay with it," Jamie says. "He said he was, and that moment meant everything."
Something remarkable happened as the convoy prepared to begin. As she stood in the circle of 50 car enthusiasts, person after person approached Jamie with the same message: they needed this moment as much as Robert did.
"This wasn't just for my uncle," Jamie realized. "This was for all those people that needed to give."
Giving gifts
Strangers brought handmade gifts – a Red Wings clock crafted from car parts, model cars, team hats. As cars cruised past, Robert surprised everyone, rising to thank his neighbors with an energy his family hadn’t seen in weeks.
As her family faced difficult times, Jamie found hope in an unexpected moment. It taught her something powerful about community and how a shared passion could transform individual pain into collective hope.
Robert called it his "personal Dream Cruise." For the strangers who showed up, it became proof that genuine care knows no boundaries.
In less than a week, strangers became a team. United by a love of cars and a desire to help, they created something extraordinary from a simple idea.
Robert passed away peacefully two weeks later, surrounded by family. In his final days, he kept a framed montage of photos from the event beside his bed – a final, vibrant chapter that revealed how a lifetime of loving cars could spark an extraordinary moment of human connection.
"When you give,” Jamie reflects, “you get more than you receive.”
Teresa LoPiccolo is Senior Manager of Communications, Strategic Initiatives at General Motors. Comments or questions: news@gm.com