The car event will be held on Sunday 3rd March 2024 at Bicentennial Park in Chelsea, Victoria.
The Isabella and Marcus Foundation started in 2010
The Isabella & Marcus Foundation Classic Car Day has grown over the past 13 years since its inception in 2011 in a small warehouse in Mordialloc with 70 cars. It stemmed from Tony’s (Marcus’ Dad) passion for classic cars or as Marcus would call them “hot cars”. By the second year the event had doubled in size so the search was on for a bigger venue to accommodate the growing interest from car enthusiasts.
The City of Kingston offered the charity a scenic back oval in Bonbeach, which was fantastic except the venue proved to be a logistical challenge to safely move cars in and out of a very narrow entrance! There were long queues to enter for the 400 plus enthusiasts but the patience and support from the classic car community of Victoria was quite moving to us. After two years at the Bonbeach site, traffic management was improved, “better but still crazy”.
The council offered an even bigger more car friendly venue at Bicentennial Park in Chelsea. This site offers 3 larger ovals and additional space for public parking, and is now the Home of the Isabella and Marcus Foundation Classic Car Day.
The event now attracts about 500 classic cars from all eras and welcomes all types of cars. Over 1000 people of all ages also walk in to enjoy the cars and be entertained. It is a family orientated day filled with live music and lots of entertainment, including jumping castles, an animal farm, face painting, tattoos, the local fire brigade, an AFL "Specky" machine, market stalls, food, raffles and a wonderful Pin-up parade that speaks of a golden era.
This is all made possible by the wonderful classic car community that come along to support this event year after year. Car Entry fee is $20 which includes a gift pack and a raffle ticket drawn on the day. All the proceeds go directly to the Isabella and Marcus Foundation to fund research that will develop treatment for children with brain cancer. The show is supported by a wonderful team of volunteers who give up their day to make this event as successful as can be.
The City of Kingston offered the charity a scenic back oval in Bonbeach, which was fantastic except the venue proved to be a logistical challenge to safely move cars in and out of a very narrow entrance! There were long queues to enter for the 400 plus enthusiasts but the patience and support from the classic car community of Victoria was quite moving to us. After two years at the Bonbeach site, traffic management was improved, “better but still crazy”.
The council offered an even bigger more car friendly venue at Bicentennial Park in Chelsea. This site offers 3 larger ovals and additional space for public parking, and is now the Home of the Isabella and Marcus Foundation Classic Car Day.
The event now attracts about 500 classic cars from all eras and welcomes all types of cars. Over 1000 people of all ages also walk in to enjoy the cars and be entertained. It is a family orientated day filled with live music and lots of entertainment, including jumping castles, an animal farm, face painting, tattoos, the local fire brigade, an AFL "Specky" machine, market stalls, food, raffles and a wonderful Pin-up parade that speaks of a golden era.
This is all made possible by the wonderful classic car community that come along to support this event year after year. Car Entry fee is $20 which includes a gift pack and a raffle ticket drawn on the day. All the proceeds go directly to the Isabella and Marcus Foundation to fund research that will develop treatment for children with brain cancer. The show is supported by a wonderful team of volunteers who give up their day to make this event as successful as can be.
Brain cancer in Children
Brain cancer kills more children than ANY other disease in Australia. Many of these deaths are caused by an incurable cancer called ‘Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma’ (DIPG) that typically occurs in children between 4 and 12 years of age. With no treatment options only radiotherapy can slow the disease for a while but most of the children still die within a year of diagnosis; Isabella lived for 6 months and Marcus lived for only 9 weeks.
Moreover, the disease dramatically affects their quality of life as they accumulate a series of neurological deficits, such as double vision (as one or both eyes turn inward), paralysis, seizures, loss of speech, their capacity to swallow food and much more. But it also affects the children in a very personal way by altering their outward appearance strikingly. The absence of treatments is a direct result of underfunding research.
The Isabella and Marcus Foundation
Isabella and Marcus’ parents met soon after their children passed away. Their experience has empowered them to improve the outcome for children with DIPG and provide hope for families. The charity was established a few months later in 2010 and has since provided numerous research grants to scientists around Australia, 9 PhD scholarships to train the next generation of paediatric brain cancer researchers and funding to bring scientists together to discuss and share their or research. In 2022-the charity will fund a new clinical trial for children and young adults in Australia and New Zealand. The proceeds from the car show will go towards funding this clinical trial.
Brain cancer kills more children than ANY other disease in Australia. Many of these deaths are caused by an incurable cancer called ‘Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma’ (DIPG) that typically occurs in children between 4 and 12 years of age. With no treatment options only radiotherapy can slow the disease for a while but most of the children still die within a year of diagnosis; Isabella lived for 6 months and Marcus lived for only 9 weeks.
Moreover, the disease dramatically affects their quality of life as they accumulate a series of neurological deficits, such as double vision (as one or both eyes turn inward), paralysis, seizures, loss of speech, their capacity to swallow food and much more. But it also affects the children in a very personal way by altering their outward appearance strikingly. The absence of treatments is a direct result of underfunding research.
The Isabella and Marcus Foundation
Isabella and Marcus’ parents met soon after their children passed away. Their experience has empowered them to improve the outcome for children with DIPG and provide hope for families. The charity was established a few months later in 2010 and has since provided numerous research grants to scientists around Australia, 9 PhD scholarships to train the next generation of paediatric brain cancer researchers and funding to bring scientists together to discuss and share their or research. In 2022-the charity will fund a new clinical trial for children and young adults in Australia and New Zealand. The proceeds from the car show will go towards funding this clinical trial.
Clinical trial
The Isabella and Marcus Foundation is funding a new treatment for children called BIOMEDE (Biological Medicine for Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma Eradication). 250 children worldwide will be treated with drugs that specifically target mutations commonly found in DIPG. Treatment for 24 children from Australia and New Zealand will be funded by the Isabella and Marcus Foundation. The study is being run by the Australian and New Zealand Children’s Haematology/Oncology Group and led by Dr Geoff McCowage at the Children’s Hospital at Westmead, Sydney.
Advocacy
The Isabella and Marcus Foundation is a founding member of the ‘Low Survival Cancers Alliance, an advocacy/lobby group lead by the Cancer Council of Victoria, which is seeking additional funding from State and Federal governments for cancers with 5 year survival rates below 50%, which includes brain cancer. In response to this lobbying, the Victorian government provided $ 1.5 million in funding for research, which was backed up by an additional $ 1 million dollars in funding from the Cancer Council of Victoria. The Isabella and Marcus Foundation also presented before the Federal Senate Committee in 2017 investigating ‘Funding for Research into Cancers with Low survival Rates’.
Classic Car Show (2011 – 2020)
The inaugural show was held at Pitman Classics in 2011 and showcased 70 cars. It has since grown to attract 500 classic cars, plus a selection of trucks and motor bikes and is now held at Bicentennial Park in Chelsea as a family day, including music and activities for the kids to enjoy too.
The Isabella and Marcus Foundation is funding a new treatment for children called BIOMEDE (Biological Medicine for Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma Eradication). 250 children worldwide will be treated with drugs that specifically target mutations commonly found in DIPG. Treatment for 24 children from Australia and New Zealand will be funded by the Isabella and Marcus Foundation. The study is being run by the Australian and New Zealand Children’s Haematology/Oncology Group and led by Dr Geoff McCowage at the Children’s Hospital at Westmead, Sydney.
Advocacy
The Isabella and Marcus Foundation is a founding member of the ‘Low Survival Cancers Alliance, an advocacy/lobby group lead by the Cancer Council of Victoria, which is seeking additional funding from State and Federal governments for cancers with 5 year survival rates below 50%, which includes brain cancer. In response to this lobbying, the Victorian government provided $ 1.5 million in funding for research, which was backed up by an additional $ 1 million dollars in funding from the Cancer Council of Victoria. The Isabella and Marcus Foundation also presented before the Federal Senate Committee in 2017 investigating ‘Funding for Research into Cancers with Low survival Rates’.
Classic Car Show (2011 – 2020)
The inaugural show was held at Pitman Classics in 2011 and showcased 70 cars. It has since grown to attract 500 classic cars, plus a selection of trucks and motor bikes and is now held at Bicentennial Park in Chelsea as a family day, including music and activities for the kids to enjoy too.
The 12th Isabella and Marcus Foundation Classic Car Day was held at Bicentennial Park in Chelsea on Sunday, March 5th, 2023 - See photos above
The weather was warm and sunny this year, in contrast to the inclement weather of 2022 and attracted 450 classic and modern cars, trucks and a few bikes to the show with 1000 walk-ins. The event kicked off at 8:30 am for the cars and opened to the general public at 10 am.
This family friendly day included many activities for the children, including a Fun Pad Bus, a petting zoo, the local SES and Fire Brigade, who set up a target for the children to shoot with water hoses. Members of the 501st Legion, Knightfall Garrison were parading amongst the crowd in Star Wars characters and were probably more popular with the adults as the children.
The musical entertainment was opened by Shortnote (https://tinyurl.com/28aza5j4), who generously donated his services for the 10th time. The Infernos Rockabilly followed with music that was perfectly suited to the era (https://www.instagram.com/doninfernos/). A highlight of the show, the fashion parade was back, hosted by Sandra Horne (https://www.instagram.com/sandrahornee/?hl=en) which drew many people from the crowd onto the stage to parade their beautiful regalia from the classic car era and was very popular with many people in the crowd watching.
For the car enthusiasts trophies were awarded in 9 categories: Best Aussie, Best Euro, Best Hot Rod, Best American, the Chrome Bumper award sponsored by the Jets Car Club, Best Modern, the IMF Choice award and the King of Show sponsored by Lets Go Crusin’. This event raises money to research the most intractable brain cancers in children. The money raised from this year’s events is funding a clinical trial for children in Australia and New Zealand that are diagnosed with Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (https://tinyurl.com/55w27a22). Our thanks to the Classic Car Community for their long-term support.
The weather was warm and sunny this year, in contrast to the inclement weather of 2022 and attracted 450 classic and modern cars, trucks and a few bikes to the show with 1000 walk-ins. The event kicked off at 8:30 am for the cars and opened to the general public at 10 am.
This family friendly day included many activities for the children, including a Fun Pad Bus, a petting zoo, the local SES and Fire Brigade, who set up a target for the children to shoot with water hoses. Members of the 501st Legion, Knightfall Garrison were parading amongst the crowd in Star Wars characters and were probably more popular with the adults as the children.
The musical entertainment was opened by Shortnote (https://tinyurl.com/28aza5j4), who generously donated his services for the 10th time. The Infernos Rockabilly followed with music that was perfectly suited to the era (https://www.instagram.com/doninfernos/). A highlight of the show, the fashion parade was back, hosted by Sandra Horne (https://www.instagram.com/sandrahornee/?hl=en) which drew many people from the crowd onto the stage to parade their beautiful regalia from the classic car era and was very popular with many people in the crowd watching.
For the car enthusiasts trophies were awarded in 9 categories: Best Aussie, Best Euro, Best Hot Rod, Best American, the Chrome Bumper award sponsored by the Jets Car Club, Best Modern, the IMF Choice award and the King of Show sponsored by Lets Go Crusin’. This event raises money to research the most intractable brain cancers in children. The money raised from this year’s events is funding a clinical trial for children in Australia and New Zealand that are diagnosed with Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (https://tinyurl.com/55w27a22). Our thanks to the Classic Car Community for their long-term support.
Location: Bicentennial Park - Thames Promenade & Scotch Parade, Chelsea VIC.
Cost: Car entry is $20. Gates open at 8 am. Visitor entry is by gold coin donation.
Car enthusiasts: Contact Tony if you wish to showcase your car, on 0412 581 691.
Volunteer enquiries for the event: Contact Daniela on 0412 339 673 for more information.
Stall holders: Contact Daniela on 0412 339 693, or write to [email protected]
Websites and links
https://twitter.com/_IsabellaMarcus
www.isabellaandmarcusfoundation.org
www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMgyVOIAEwA
www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0NENYHRa5U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHQ12HvtLUY
http://www.facebook.com/IsabellaAndMarcusFoundation
Cost: Car entry is $20. Gates open at 8 am. Visitor entry is by gold coin donation.
Car enthusiasts: Contact Tony if you wish to showcase your car, on 0412 581 691.
Volunteer enquiries for the event: Contact Daniela on 0412 339 673 for more information.
Stall holders: Contact Daniela on 0412 339 693, or write to [email protected]
Websites and links
https://twitter.com/_IsabellaMarcus
www.isabellaandmarcusfoundation.org
www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMgyVOIAEwA
www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0NENYHRa5U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHQ12HvtLUY
http://www.facebook.com/IsabellaAndMarcusFoundation