Builders wow organizers with generous donations for sick children  

By Pat Curry
Monthly Briefing Editor

The home builder community has once again shown its heart for those in need of a helping hand. In late August, Chuck and Emma Shinn asked Builder Partnerships members and their friends in residential construction to consider supporting their annual involvement in Driving for Kids. 

Driving for Kids is part of America’s British Reliability Run (BRR), a fun, but challenging, driving event of about 600 miles for British car hobbyists. Teams of drivers travel on great roads through beautiful countryside and enjoy the company of fellow British car enthusiasts, all for a good cause. Across the country, America’s BRR has raised more than $180,000 for worthy children’s charities. 

Driving for Kids, the Colorado version of the event, supports Roundup River Ranch in Gypsum, Colorado, a medically supported camp for children ages 7-17 who have been diagnosed with a serious illness. Part of the Paul Newman-founded SeriousFun Network of Camps, Roundup River Ranch is free to campers and their families.   

The event, held Sept. 23-25, drew 18 teams that traveled 620 miles of back country Colorado mountain roads; the Shinns were driving their yellow-and-black 1963 Morgan Roadster. On the cold, rainy opening day of the trip, they experienced what it was like to drive a British roadster in the 1960s. 

“As we gained altitude, the rain turned to snow,” Chuck Shinn said. “The Morgan has no heat or defroster and the windshield wipers are only 4 inches long. Emma functioned as my defroster with a towel, and the windshield wipers turned the snow to ice, reducing the width of the area of view. As we crested Rabbit Ears Pass, at elevation 9,426 feet, I felt like I was driving a tank with a view out the windshield of about 2 inches wide by 4 inches high.” 

The Shinns’ “Team Shindig Rover” led the 18 teams in donations, raising $4,900. Together, the teams raised $25,000 for children to attend camp at Roundup River Ranch. When the Shinns finished collecting donations, they sent a thank-you email to all their supporters and mentioned that they hoped to find someone to match the total.

Dwight Sandlin, cofounder and chief executive officer of Signature Homes in Birmingham, Alabama, sent an email to his fellow builder group member Stephen Brooks, CEO of Grand Homes in Addison, Texas. 

“Dwight told Stephen, ‘You made so much money last year, you ought to pony up and match the funds,’” Shinn said. “Stephen did it. Then Dwight sent me a separate email, saying, ‘I will match whatever Stephen gives.’”

Shinn gave Brooks the option of matching what the Shinns raised on their team or the amount raised by all 18 teams, which at the time was $22,000. Brooks generously matched the full amount raised.

“Dwight agreed to match it and said, ‘Stephen always wins,’” Shinn said. "So, he wrote out a check for $22,001 so he would be the winner."

Notably, the matching funds the two builders donated were on top of the generous contributions they had already made to Team Shindig Rover. That brought the total amount raised from the three-day event to more than $69,000 — enough to send 27 children to camp!  

“It was a fun three days of fellowship with other antique British car enthusiasts for a wonderful cause,” Chuck said. “Emma and I truly appreciate your support for us, the kids, and Roundup River Ranch.”  

Chuck and Emma Shinn would like to thank everyone who made donations to Driving for Kids to benefit Roundup River Ranch. They are: 

Jamie Baessler from Baessler Homes 

Todd Booze from Ideal Homes  

Stephen Brooks from Grand Homes 

Lita Dirks from Lita Dirks & Co. 

Brian Hamilton from Land Title Guarantee Co. 

Rich Kashian from MiTek SAPPHIRE Build 

Alan Looney from Castle Homes 

Ben Minks from Capstone Homes  

Steve Moore from BSB Design  

Dwight Sandlin from Signature Homes  

Bill Wynn from Wynn Homes  

Builder Partnerships team members Monica Wheaton, Emma Jane Wildermuth, and Pat Curry

Last month, Emma and I participated in the fifth annual Driving for Kids charity event as team Shindig Rover.  Driving for Kids is part of America’s British Reliability Run (BRR), a fun, but challenging, driving event for British car enthusiasts. Teams of drivers travel through the Colorado mountains, over several passes with elevations over 10,000 feet, all for a good cause.

The Colorado event supports Roundup River Ranch, a medically supported camp for children ages 7-17 who have been diagnosed with a serious illness. Part of the Paul Newman-founded SeriousFun Network of Camps, Roundup River Ranch is free to campers and their families.
 
Fifteen teams participated in this year’s event. Emma and I drove 784 miles in our little 1963 right-hand drive, hand-built, wooden chassis British Morgan. We drove through parts of Colorado and explored quaint small towns we had never visited during our 45 years in the state.

Shindig Rover once again excelled as the top fundraising team with donations totaling $22,750. Over the course of five years, Shindig Rover team members have contributed more than $100,000 and sponsored 40 kids and their families for the week-long camping experience at Roundup River Ranch. Thanks to all of our generous donors, we have led the way in donations each year of the event.



This year, the event kicked off in two locations, Denver and Colorado Springs, rendezvousing for lunch at Columbine Park in Buena Vista. The day was sunny with high temperatures in the 80s, so the tops were down for the day. After lunch, we traveled over Cottonwood Pass at an elevation of 11,312 feet. Last year, we were among the first to drive the pass after it was paved for the first time the week before our event.

We drove 340 miles the first day. We traveled through Taylor River Valley to Gunnison, Colorado, over North Cochetopa Pass to Monte Vista. Base camp was at the Best Western Movie Manor, a motel with a drive-in theatre attached where you can watch a movie from your car or your motel room.
 
The second day was sunny and cool with a strong, cold crosswind for most of the trip, so the tops went up for warmth. After lunch at Legion Park in Gunnison, we headed to Blue Mesa Reservoir and Lake City which is famous for Alfred Packer, “The Colorado Cannibal.” He confessed to forced cannibalism of five members of his party after being lost for two and a half months during severe winter storms and snow drifts in the Lake Fork drainage area.



From Lake City, we headed south on CO-149 to Creede, a fantastic little town and worth a visit if you vacation in Colorado. It was the last silver mining boom town in Colorado, with a population of over 10,000 in 1891. Creede is on the headwaters of the Rio Grande River. 
 
We cruised back to the motel for our margarita social at a closed restaurant nearby and a special request movie, the original version of “The Italian Job” at the drive-in. We drove 262 miles and crossed the continental divide twice. The little old cars get cranky and the Morgan’s four-cylinder engine gets weak at over 10,000 feet.

The third day was overcast, cold and windy with temperatures around 30 degrees, so the side windscreens were screwed on. With all the stuff packed for the return trip and Emma and I wearing several layers of clothing, we were like two sardines is a can. At least we were warm. I don’t know if Emma could find her legs and feet because they were encased in stuff packed in her leg-well.
 
We traveled over Poncha Pass to Poncha Springs and headed into Salida for our awards lunch at The Boathouse Cantina overlooking the Arkansas River. Salida is a wonderful small Colorado town worth a visit. After lunch, we split into two groups, one heading to Denver and the other to Colorado Springs. The drive on the third day was 265 miles for us Denver residents and 215 miles for the Colorado Springs folks.

Our timing was perfect this year as the leaves on the aspen trees were in full color. On the second day, strong winds were stripping the leaves off the tops of the trees, but the golden color amongst the evergreens was spectacular. Some of the trees were bare at the top, golden at the middle and still green on the bottom.
 
Once again, it was a wonderful trip with our fellow British car enthusiasts. No home building business discussed.  One of the couples that joined us was Jim and Debbie Keck from Chicago. Jim was a student of mine in 1976 and 1977 when I taught at DU.  Ross Robbins auctioned a car for the trip on Bring-a-Trailer, and Jim won the auction. It was so nice to rekindle our relationship through an act of serendipity.

All fifteen cars made the trip without any major trauma. There were a couple of overheats, a few hard starts, but no one came home on the trailer. Each year, the cars get older along with the drivers, and we keep challenging the odds.

Emma and I wish to thank all of our Shindig Rover team members for their wonderful support of the Driving for Kids event.
 

Emma and I are once again activating the “Shindig Rover” team to participate in the 9th annual “Driving for Kids” British car charity endurance run through the Colorado mountains and back country roads. This year we will explore the north central Colorado mountain roads, spending three days pinwheeling from Kremmling, Colorado.  

The event will be held September 20-23, which should be the height of autumn colors in the mountains. We will traverse the Continental Divide three times. On the second day we will visit Roundup River Ranch to join the kids for lunch at Trent’s Cookhouse and a hands-on car show which is the highlight of the trip each year.



The charity drive supports chronically ill children and their families for a free week of camping at Roundup River Ranch in Gypsum, Colorado. The ranch is a medically-supported camp where the kids can just enjoy the fun of being a kid, no matter what illness they are battling. Visit the following website to watch a short video about the camp: www.roundupriverranch.org.

Last year, Emma and I started the drive in our fully restored 1967 Austin Healey 3000. Going up the very narrow Independence Pass, we had to straddle a rockslide. We almost made it but one of the rocks caught the oil drain plug causing a leak in the oil pan. At the crest of the pass one of the drivers noticed the oil leak. We were able to proceed through Aspen to Glenwood Springs where we loaded the car on a trailer and headed back to Denver. We transferred everything to our 1997 BMW-Z3 and headed back to meet the tour at Roundup River Ranch the next morning to visit the kids and continue the drive.



We will be riding in style this year. Our Benchmark builder group held a surprise retirement dinner party for Emma and me and presented us with a new 2024 Lotus Emira for the “Driving for Kids” event. We are going to pick the car up in Naples, Florida, in June for its maiden voyage back to Denver. Will we be able to handle a reliable, non-vintage British sports car?

This year’s event will consist of around 20 British cars caravanning through the mountains and backcountry in north central Colorado. The three-day tour will begin in Golden, up Golden Gate Canyon to Nederland, and into Estes Park for lunch. In the afternoon, the route takes us to Grand Lake via Trail Ridge Road, crossing the Continental Divide for the first time, then Byers Canyon to Kremmling which is our base location for the tour. On the second day, we travel over Gore Pass to Roundup River Ranch for lunch with the kids and our hands-on car show, and then head to Oak Creek and Steamboat on two of our favorite roads for our small sports cars. From Steamboat, we drive over Rabbit Ears and Muddy Creek passes, crossing the Continental Divide twice again to return to our base camp in Kremmling. On the third day, we head to Walden, Granby, and then Winter Park for lunch. After lunch, the tour heads south over Berthoud Pass to Empire, then down Clear Creek Canyon back to Golden.

Emma and I invite you to join our “Shindig Rover” team for this wonderful event, supporting the kids for our 9th “Driving for Kids” fundraising event. Our team has been the top fundraiser for each of the last eight years, totaling more than $250,000 to support the kids. Emma and I have been humbled by your continued support for us and the outpouring of donations each of you have made for these chronically ill kids and their families. We truly make a difference in their lives.

Chuck & Emma Shinn

Emma and I participated in the 6th Annual Driving for Kids vintage British car charity endurance run through the Colorado mountains and back country last month in our golden beige 1967 Austin Healey 3000.  The charity drive supports chronically ill children and their families for a free week of camping at Roundup River Ranch.  The ranch is part of the global community of SeriousFun medical specialty camps for kids, founded by Paul Newman.

The weather was wonderful for driving our little British sports cars in the Colorado mountains with sunny skies and temperatures ranging from the low 40s in the mornings and mountain passes to the mid-70s in the afternoons and high plains.  Over the four days, we traveled about 900 miles.  There were 14 cars participating.  One of the teams was Steve and Sue Moore. Steve is a senior partner at BSB Design.  Steve has been a member of the Shindig Rover team for four years.  This year, he and his wife were able to join us with their own team, “S’Mores”.


 
Half of the teams departed from Denver and half from Colorado Springs.  After a rendezvous in Buena Vista, we headed for Gunnison for our lunch stop.  After lunch, we traveled to Telluride via the north rim of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison and Montrose, covering 380 miles of back country roads.  The second day of the event was spent at the Telluride Autumn Classic car show.  Our fourteen cars were on display as part of the British Concours.  I must say, our cars showed very well even though we did not have a chance to clean the cars after our prior day of touring.  On the third day, we headed for South Folk through Dolores, Hesperus for lunch, and Pagosa Springs, covering 215 miles of beautiful Colorado mountain and high plains scenery.  Monday, the fourth day, we closed the loop returning home via Alamosa, Walsenburg, Silver Cliff, Florence, Colorado Springs and Sedalia.  I have attached a copy of the 2021 Driving for Kids Route Book so you can follow our jaunt through Colorado.

For the Austin Healey’s maiden voyage, it was fairly uneventful.  The brake light failed on the first day.  On the third day, as we left Telluride, the speedometer/odometer stopped working, so I had to use the tachometer or buddy system to judge my speed.  On the last day, the car starting missing with no power.  It looked like this was going to be a major issue, however, it ended up being fairly simple.  The rotor was contacting a wire for the new electronic ignition, causing a short.  Once resolved. the car ran great, cruising between 75 and 95 mph on the open high plains back roads.



Emma and I want to thank all of our Shindig Rover team members for your generosity and support over the last six years of the Driving for Kids events.  You have made a difference in the lives of a lot of critically ill kids and their families.  Every year, our team has led in donations.  Over the six years, Shindig Rover team donations totaled $176,000 or an average of almost $30,000 a year.  This year, the Shindig Rover team consisted of 42 donors with a total of $28,000.  Your Shindig Rover team represented over 44% of the $63,500 total donations raised by this year’s Driving for Kids event.  We are humbled by your support and the outpouring of donations each of you made for the kids to spend a week of camping at the ranch.  Over the last six years, we have made camp available for over 70 kids and their families.

A collection of photos from the event can be found here: builderpartnerships.com/articles/2021-driving-for-kids-event-photos

This year’s Driving for Kids event was very successful thanks to the generosity of the twelve participating driver teams and their contributing members. The event raised $95,820 for chronically ill children and their families to experience a week of camping at Roundup River Ranch in Gypsum, Colorado. During the eight years of the Driving for Kids event, which is organized by Ross and Ann Robbins, teams have raised over $500,000 allowing 166 kids with serious illnesses to attend camp.
 
   

The Shindig Rover team, as the lead fundraiser for the eighth year, raised $40,159. This represents 42% of the donations. Cathy Ethington, Vice President of Philanthropy, personally reached out by phone to a number of the Shindig Rover team members to thank them for their very generous contributions. Cathy extended a special thanks to Emma and me for inspiring so many people to support Roundup River’s mission to make Driving for Kids the most amazing fundraising event her organization has ever had. For our eight years of fundraising leadership, Emma and I were honored as the king and queen of the Driving for Kids event. On the second day of the event, we held a hands-on car show for the kids and their families to enjoy at the ranch. The kids sit behind the steering wheels and dream of places they would like to go and things they would like to do. When asked, they all have a story about what they are thinking.

   

The weather for the event was perfect. It was sunny, crisp in the morning with temperatures in the upper 30s to low 40s and highs in the upper 60s and low 70s during the day. There was hardly a cloud in the sky. For the teams driving convertibles, sun screen was a must. Several people looked like raccoons by the end of the fourth day. The twisty, curvy mountain roads to and from the Continental Divide passes were fun and invigorating tests for the vintage cars and their vintage drivers and navigators. During the four days, we traversed over the back country roads of western Colorado and New Mexico for more than 1,000 miles. We drove through towns that were throwbacks to the old west and towns so small that if you blinked you would miss them and wonder how they survive in the middle of nowhere. The only problem with the drive was there was very little fall color. The aspen trees were starting to turn, but the weather had been too warm. The height of the fall colors and the golden glow of the mountains under the blanket of aspen trees was two weeks late this year. We did begin to see more color with each passing day of the drive.

   

The drive took us over Independence Pass (which is closed during the winter) to Aspen, Glenwood Canyon, McClure Pass, Black Canyon of the Gunnison, Dead Man’s Gluch, Wolf Creek Pass, Creede, Weminuche Wilderness (roughly 500,000 acres of wilderness area), and Bishop’s Castle on CO 165, which we had never seen. One man built the castle after acquiring the land for $450 when he was 15 years old. Look up Bishop’s Castle on the internet. It is an interesting story.

   

During a four-day drive through the mountains in vintage cars, you can expect adventure and mishaps. Emma and I began the drive on Thursday evening. After installing the special delivery brake light switch, we headed to Colorado Springs for the evening to meet up with the other drivers at 8:00 am on Friday at the Garden of the Gods Trading Post, run by Tim Haas (driver of Breakdown Kid). After a brief driver’s meeting, we left the Trading Post at 9:00 am. The Austin Healey was running great, but not for long.

We headed west to Buena Vista for lunch, and then to Twin Lakes before climbing Independence Pass, which is a very narrow, winding road crossing the Continental Divide to Aspen. Vehicles over 35 feet long are prohibited on the pass, so our mechanic, sweep vehicle, and trailer had to depart to meet up with us in Glennwood Springs for the evening. Going up Independence Pass there was a small rock slide in the middle the road. A string of cars was descending the pass so I couldn’t swing out into the other lane, and there was no shoulder.  I tried to straddle the biggest rock, which I thought I had done successfully. When we stopped at the top of the pass, one of the drivers noticed I had a major oil leak. I almost made it, but the rock caught the drain plug on the oil pan, which is the lowest point on the Healey with only 3.5 inches of clearance.

   

We proceeded to Aspen, I added a quart of oil, and we headed to Glenwood Springs, dripping oil all the way. In Glenwood, I loaded the Healey on the sweep trailer and headed back to Denver. The Healey only survived one day and 277 miles of the trip. Emma stayed with the group. After unloading the Healey at home and transferring everything over to my 1997 BMW Z3, I headed back up the mountain to meet the group at Roundup River Ranch at 10:00 am for the car show for the kids. The rest of the trip was uneventful for Emma and me. The only other mishap happened while I was gone switching cars. Ross didn’t close his door on his Lotus Elan. When he backed up, the door opened, hit something and fell off the car. He was doorless until a makeshift repair held it in place for the rest of the trip.

CLICK HERE to watch an inspiring video of a camper that has been with Roundup River Ranch since he was seven years old. The password for the video is smile.

Thank you for all your support for Emma and me and the seriously ill kids to whom we have been able to give a week of camping, sunshine and joy.

Chuck & Emma Shinn
 

For the ninth year, Emma and Chuck participated in the Driving for Kids charity event, September 20-22, 2024. Driving for Kids supports chronically ill kids and their families to spend a week of camping at Roundup River Ranch which is on the Colorado River in Gypsum, Colorado. Roundup River Ranch is part of the worldwide network of Paul Newman’s medically supported camps for children with chronic and life-threatening illnesses.



This year, there were ten teams and nine British cars participating in the three-day drive through the mountains at the peak of fall colors. We crossed the Continental Divide four times, reaching 12,000 feet of elevation on Trail Ridge Road. The vintage British cars had difficulties with the elevation, one of which had to be towed back to a lower elevation so it could continue the drive.



We generally had perfect weather for our fall drive in the Colorado mountains. The first day and a half, it was warm and sunny. After our visit to Roundup River Ranch for our annual car show and lunch with the kids, the weather turned to overcast and rain. The teams in open British cars voted to shorten the afternoon drive and head back to the hotel in Kremmling for cocktails and dinner. It snowed that evening, and we had low cloud cover, some fog, and beautiful fresh snow caps on the mountains. Thankfully, by the time we got to the mountain passes, the snow on the roads had melted, and we had nice winter vistas to enjoy.



Four cars had mechanical problems during the drive. Two of the cars finished the drive on the trailer of the sweep truck, one was towed to the hotel in Kremmling by AAA and was able to finish the drive, and one had an oil problem and had to withdraw.



The Driving for Kids event raised a record $108,720 for the kids. For each of the nine years of the event, Chuck and Emma’s Shindig Rover team has been the lead team in fundraising, thanks to the generosity of the home builders, friends and family who donate to the cause. This year, the Shindig Rover team raised nearly $64,000 for the kids. One builder group donated more than $35,000 and another builder group bought Chuck and Emma a yellow Lotus Emira for their retirement to drive in style for the event.



Links to the route book and additional photos will be forthcoming.

Emma and I are focused on organizing our “Shindig Rover” team for the 10th anniversary of the Driving for Kids charity British car endurance run. The event supports chronically ill kids and their families for a free week of camping at Roundup River Ranch in Gypsum, Colorado on the Colorado River. The ranch is a medically-supported camp where kids can enjoy being a kid, no matter what illness they are battling. The ranch is part of Paul Newman’s Serious Fun Children’s Network of global medical specialty camps. Click on the following link to view a video about the camp: roundupriverranch.org.



This year, we are changing the venue for the trip from Colorado to New Mexico. The cars and team drivers will assemble at noon on September 19 in Raton for lunch and receive the route book for spectacular scenery on wonderful New Mexico roads. We will headquarter in Chama for two days, with a scheduled classic train trip through the mountains on September 20.

During the prior nine years of this event, the “Shindig Rover” team has led the fundraising. Driving for Kids has raised a total of $611,200 for the kids, and the “Shindig Rover” team has raised more than $250,000. Last year, the event generated $110,500, with “Shindig Rover” accounting for $64,000. We appreciate all of our supporters and team members for opening their hearts for the kids and their families.



It would be great to finish the decade of giving with a record year of donations from the “Shindig Rover” team. This is probably our last adventure for the kids. Now in our 80s, we’re having a harder time dealing with the small British sports cars. Thanks to the Benchmark Builder Group, we will again be driving our relatively comfortable Lotus Emira to represent the team.

Emma and I invite you to join the “Shindig Rover” team for its 10th year supporting the kids. To help continue our decade winning streak, you can contribute by joining our team at: https://www.classy.org/team/734741. Roundup River Ranch is a 501.c.3 charity, so all contributions are fully deductible. If you need to write a check, please send it to Roundup River Ranch, 8333 Colorado River Road, Gypsum, CO 81637. Checks need to be made out to Roundup River Ranch with the name “Shindig Rover” on the memo line so they are properly accounted for. Please let me know you have sent a check so I can keep track of your donation. 



The smiles on the kids’ faces lets you know how much this means to them.

Thank you for your support of the kids and joining our “Shindig Rover” team this year.

Chuck and Emma Shinn