Cars, politicos vie for attention at York’s Summerfest

York’s annual Summerfest Saturday was a smorgasbord with politicos making the rounds on Congress Street, classic car owners vying for trophies, and vendors who kept attendees full and cool in the August heat.

Ray Thomasson saw it all from his Italian Ice stand, set up on East Liberty Street in front of McClain’s Barber Shop. For Thomasson, a retired Greenwood police officer whose brother is a York Police Department lieutenant, the city’s Summerfest is a homecoming. In between serving cups of sour apple and orange-vanilla Italian ice, the York native waved at old friends.

It’s also the place where the city’s mayor, Eddie Lee, escorted James Carville. Carville, a longtime adviser to Bill and Hillary Clinton, spent Saturday campaigning in two South Carolina cities on behalf of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

Carville thanked volunteers at the the York County Democratic Party tent at Summerfest. Earlier in the day, he helped launch Hillary Clinton’s “Hillary for Richland” campaign in Columbia.

The contrast between the Republican Party and Democrats, Carville said, is drastic. GOP candidates “want to go back to a country we had,” Carville said. Clinton’s vision is “to move forward with the future ... (to ask) how are we going to shape this country in 2018 and 2028.”

Carville’s stop in York lasted about an hour – just enough time to take in a little bit of everything at Summerfest, a two-day outdoor event that draws thousands of people. Lee and Carville strolled past dozens of business booths and organization tents set up in York’s downtown area before the mayor reported for duty to announce winners of the festival’s car show.

The classic car show is a Summerfest favorite for many, including Jerry Hagans of Clover who entered his green 1969 Chevrolet Camaro Z28 – a car he bought more than 30 years ago, invested $30,000 in, and is now a gift for his 13-year-old granddaughter.

Hagins watched Saturday’s 32nd annual Summerfest from the comfort of his lawn chair set up in the shade on a sidewalk. Even with plenty else to do – helicopter rides, live music, and shopping – people-watching was still a great way to pass the time at Summerfest.

This story was originally published August 22, 2015 at 7:55 PM with the headline "Cars, politicos vie for attention at York’s Summerfest."