Ed Reavie in his First National Bank office. Ed Reavie, known best for starting the St. Ignace Car Show in 1976, is retiring from First National Bank of St. Ignace after 42 years of employment there.

Looking back on those years at the bank and 50 years in total of working on St. Ignace's main street, Mr. Reavie, 69, sees more than paychecks, loan applications, and credit checks. What he remembers is the rise and fall of an era he called "the best time to live."

Mr. Reavie, the first vice president for consumer loans at the bank, was born in Cheboygan but grew up in and around St. Ignace. His grandfather, Edward A. Reavie, built the Silver Sands resort on US-2, his father, Kress A. Reavie, worked on the ferries and later for the state's highway department, and his parents owned and operated the resort.

"He really knew how to make money," Mr. Reavie said of his grandfather. "He was the first big deal on US-2."

His grandfather built the resort from the ground up, he said, originally because friends and family wanted to come visit and he didn't like a lot of people staying at his house.

"He just started building cabins," Mr. Reavie said. When all was said and done, the family owned a resort with 14 cabins, a Shell gas station, and a restaurant all in the same area. His grandfather also owned a brickyard in Moran.

A family effort, he recalls hauling ice for the resort's iceboxes and his father working nights at the cabins installing indoor plumbing.

Mr. Reavie was graduated from LaSalle High School in 1958, an accomplishment he was uncertain of until he saw the signed diploma onstage at his graduation.

"I was a mediocre student at best," he said. "I was having way too much fun, but I sure loved cars."

That love of cars eventually blossomed into a legacy of automobile history through the auto shows he developed. 1976, the year of the countrys bicentennial, Mr. Reavie and several business associates hatched the idea of a car show.

After 34 years, the St. Ignace Car Show is one of the countrys best known and highly attended events of its kind. From the Car Show was later spawned the Antiques on the Bay Show, the Richard Crane Memorial Truck Show, and most recently a tractor parade and exhibit.

The stimulus that these shows have provided to St. Ignace and the surrounding area over the past 34 years is immeasurable, amounting to tens of millions of dollars. The phrase "St. Ignace Car Show" and the name "Ed Reavie" are inseparable.

Before any of that was yet a notion in Mr. Reavie's head, he was a hard-working young man, painting houses, selling cars, stocking store shelves, and doing whatever he needed to do to save up for his first car. As a sophomore in high school, Mr. Reavie started his first job at the A&P grocery store on State Street and his father told him, after he got his first paycheck, that $10 from every check would go toward his room and board.

"He told me, 'If you can find a better deal, go for it'," Mr. Reavie said. "I looked around and couldn't really find any better way to get clean clothes, food, and a place to live. I always thanked him for that later on."

Mr. Reavie reminisced about this booming period in St. Ignace's history, saying he remembered the A&P having hundreds of shoppers buying groceries on any given day.

"At that time, this town was rocking," he said. "It was a fun time to grow up."

The LaSalle High School parking lot of his memory looked and sounded a lot like the Indianapolis 500, Mr. Reavie said, a far cry from the group of modest, understated cars parked at the school today. He talked about nights at Chief's Drive- In, his first car, a red 1953 Ford convertible, and the rise of superstars like Elvis Presley and The Beatles.

"It was a different time then," he said. "Everything was new to us. I feel fortunate to have grown up in that era and to have had a good job."

After 11 years at the grocery store, a position became available at First National Bank and the bank's board of directors hired Mr. Reavie the same day he turned in his application. He started out adding up checks for the bank's tellers and, after learning a lot about banking, eventually became a loan officer and rose to his current position.

"I knew absolutely nothing about the banking world going into that job," Mr. Reavie said. "I was fortunate to have the supervision and education I had there."

Helping families in St. Ignace with home loans, business loans, student loans, and more has given him a great understanding of the history of the city's residents and their financial needs and responsibility, Mr. Reavie said.

"I know about four generations of people through lending," he said. "That is a history book. It has been very helpful in this job."

His greatest joy in the job, Mr. Reavie said, has been helping people in the community who have a great idea and are able to follow it through to completion with the help of the bank.

"There is a satisfaction in that," he said. "The big city banks don't have that; there you are just a series of numbers."

While Mr. Reavie said he dreamed as a young man to live on the West Coast and be a part of California's car culture, St. Ignace remained his home throughout his life. In fact, before the main offices were built for the current First National Bank building, Mr. Reavie lived in an apartment at the same location, just above where his bank office is now.

"I guess I haven't gotten too far away," he said. "I just kind of got settled in, and the years went so fast. For the most part, I didn't see any reason to leave."

He did achieve his dream of being part of the car culture, although it wasn't until he was 50 years old. Through the St. Ignace Car Show, he has met celebrities, personalities, and the automotive pioneers who heavily influenced him as a young car enthusiast.

This list of fame includes the famous car customizer George Barris, car designer Carroll Shelby, "father of drag racing" Don Garlits, race car driver Phil Hill, one-time "fastest man in the world" Art Arfons, "Miss Hurst Golden Shifter" Linda Vaughn, and celebrities ranging from "American Graffiti" and "Happy Days" stars to the more recent television celebrity guests John "Bo Duke" Schneider of "Dukes of Hazzard" fame and "Ice Road Trucker" Alex Debogorski.

"Now I have met just about everybody I ever read about," he said. "They have been a real inspiration to me."

Bank President Jim North said after such a long and successful career, he wishes Mr. Reavie continued good health and happiness in his retirement.

"It is hard to imagine who will miss Ed more at the bank, his fellow employees, or the numerous customers who have relied on him over decades for their financing needs," said Mr. North. "His professionalism and loyalty will be greatly missed, not to mention his sense of humor around the water-cooler."

One thing that will be crucial for whoever follows in his footsteps , Mr. Reavie said, will be passion.

"I have a passion for this stuff," he said, "and that's what you need. I've had a strong run; it's time to let somebody else jump in and do it."

Keeping him busy in the meantime will be next year's round of auto shows, "just having fun," and a book he is writing about the car culture of St. Ignace, due out next June.

"That will be an experience," he said of his first effort as an author. "I don't know what ever gave me the idea I could write a book."

The book draws from his experience growing up in St. Ignace in the '50s, '60s, and '70s and follows the growth of the St. Ignace auto show. Mr. Reavie said he got a lot of help researching and writing the book from Eileen Evers and Judy Gross.

Mr. Reavie plans to walk out of his office at the bank for the last time Friday, November 20, but he said he plans to continue to plan and organize the car and truck shows he has worked so hard to build up in St. Ignace, at least for another four years.

"It has been a great job," he said, "probably one of the best jobs in town.

"They always say you will know when you're ready to retire. I'm still in pretty good health, and with what years I have left, I think I can put them to better use. I feel truly ready."