SILVERHILL, Ala. — It’s summer and it’s time to take the kids and visit an antique car show.

A good one is coming up at the Oscar Johnson Memorial Library in Silverhill May 29. Registration for the classics begins at 8 a.m. and the show will run to 4 p.m. at the junction of Highway 104 and County Road 55.

Even better, it’s a fundraiser for the library. There will be used books for sale, but mostly, it’s a great chance to enjoy cars that Frankie Kucera, a former president of the Gear Jammers Car Club says may range from a vehicle built in the late 1800s up to 2010 models.

“It is going to be quite a sight,” said Kucera.

Cars go way back with Kucera.

“I can remember us polishing up our cars in the squares,” said Kucera, referring to the 1950s. He and his fellow car and motorcycle enthusiasts would race their vehicles on deserted stretches of road.

That’s all behind him. Kucera is also a member of the library’s board of trustees, and recalled that he could not wait to combine his love of books and classic cars.

“The ladies would hold a used book sale and raise just a few hundred dollars,” said Kucera, adding that the classic car show brings in “quite a bit more.”

This year’s show is in memory of longtime Silverhill librarian Elsie Chandler.

Elsie Adeline Sutton Chandler passed away in June of last year. She was 99.

The library was founded in 1907 by the Non Pariel Club, a women’s organization in the community. Chandler began running the library when she and her husband, owned and operated People Supply Company, a general store in Silverhill.

“This is really important to me,” said Kucera. “She and her husband were so important to this town. They would give credit to farmers who’d maybe have an income twice a year.”

Kucera recalls that during the Depression, both Chandlers would make sure that youngsters coming to the store had treats that their parents could not otherwise afford.

“We’d go,” recalled Kucera, “and my mother would have a list, and we were told not to ask for anything else.”

But, the Chandlers would see the youngsters look longingly at the penny candy on the shelves and would sometimes give the youngsters a treat.

As Kucera got older, and discovered books, he was impressed with Chandler’s dedication to the library, recalling that she would open the library up at times when most of the town had the day off so readers could stop in and select a volume.

Chandler served as a librarian for more than 50 years, and was recognized as state’s oldest librarian. In honor of her dedication to the library and the community, the library’s children’s library was named for her.

“It's truly an honor to do something in her name,” said Kucera.