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Cars for sale are made by kids in Madagascar
By Bill Lilley
Beacon Journal staff writer
Published on Tuesday, Jul 22, 2008
At 19, Danny Schonburg is too old to compete in the All-American Soap Box Derby.
But he wasn't content to follow his younger brother, German super stock champion Johnny, on his trip to Akron this week and merely watch the weeklong festivities that opened Monday morning with the Champions' Welcoming Parade.
Danny Schonburg draped himself in a German flag and joined a UNICEF program selling miniature derby cars hung on red, white and blue ribbon.
Schonburg said all of the money supports homeless children in the island nation of Madagascar, off Africa's east coast.
''The cars are made from recycled aluminum and they are made by the kids in Madagascar,'' he said. ''It's a great program because it gets the kids off the streets and they are taught how to make things. The money goes directly to the kids to help provide things they really need to live.''
Locked in
All-American Soap Box Derby General Manager Jeff Iula had everything ready to roll at 7 a.m. Monday. All of the props needed to put on the welcoming parade had been stored securely inside Canal Park.
There was just one hitch.
''Nobody unlocked the front gates to Canal Park, so when we got there at 7 a.m., we couldn't get our things outside the stadium,'' Iula said. ''Fortunately, the police have a key for everything and the Akron Police Department bailed us out.''
Iula said the parade started at 9 a.m. as scheduled. Nearly 560 of the 609 registered racers were escorted by police down Main Street over seven hours and introduced to a crowd of about 200 in front of Canal Park.
The band plays on
If Mogadore sophomore Hannah Kidd had her choice, she'd rather perform in the sleet of late November than in the heat and humidity of late July.
Kidd was one of three majorettes from the Mogadore High School Marching Band who performed on the black asphalt of Main Street as the derby champions were being introduced.
''It was so humid and sticky out there all day, I could barely hold on to my baton,'' Kidd said. ''We really looked forward to the breaks so we could go in under the tent and get ice and water.''
This was the sixth year Mogadore's band performed at the All-American. Sixteen of its 20 musicians were on hand along with director Bill Triesel.
Bill Lilley can be reached at 330-996-3811 or blilley@thebeaconjournal.com.
At 19, Danny Schonburg is too old to compete in the All-American Soap Box Derby.
Get the full article here.

