Charity car show rolls into Lodi for autism awareness

The fifth annual Layin’ the Smack Down on Autism Car Show is set for Sunday at the Lodi Grape Festival grounds. The cars will begin rolling in at 8:30 a.m. and the show will begin at 10 a.m.

The show will feature cars of all makes and all models and at least 20 trophies will be awarded this year. The entrance fee for show vehicles is $25 and there is no fee to attend the show. Several food vendors including Pizza Pirates and Fagundes Catering will be on site for those seeking refreshments during the show.

At least six trips, including travel to Cancun and Puerto Vallarta and a Caribbean cruise, along with several other prizes have been donated to be raffled off.

“The community really came through for us this year,” said Andrew Rigopoulos, the event coordinator and founder of Layin’ the Smack Down on Autism.

The trips are valued at more than a couple thousand dollars each and despite the fact that the prize winners will have to pay the taxes on the trips they are still getting a great value, Rigopoulos said.

Rigopoulos said the purpose of this event is to create awareness of autism and raise funds to continue the efforts of Layin’ the Smack Down on Autism, a nonprofit organization founded by the Rigopoulos family with a goal of providing fun activities for families and children affected by autism. When Rigopoulos’ son was diagnosed with autism five years ago, the father was disappointed to find that there were no support groups or organizations for those dealing with autism in the Lodi community.

“We were looking for a support group in this area where we could just get a little bit of answers because when my son was first diagnosed I knew nothing about autism at all. I had no clue,” Rigopoulos said.

After talking to a few of his friends who also had children with autism and discovering that they were running into the same issue, Rigopoulos and his wife decided to start their own organization.

Rigopoulos’ wife and son came up with the name Layin’ the Smack Down on Autism due to his son’s love of wrestling and wrestler Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.

They held their first car show at Habañero Hots and it was a great success, prompting them to continue their efforts. They began coordinating events and working with several people in the community to make a difference in the lives of those affected by autism. In its second year, the nonprofit was recognized by the San Francisco Giants Community Fund.

Rigopoulos said the nonprofit doesn’t have a fundraising goal for the event.

“It just depends on the love and support the community gives us,” he said.

According to Rigopoulos, the car show is the biggest fundraiser of the year and with the money they raise they are able to take families affected by autism on trips to Giants games, a trampoline park, bowling and several other activities. They get children with autism involved with youth sports and even send them to sports camps. They also provide school supplies and other support.

“The more funds that we can raise the more we can do and help kids to be themselves and to learn. A lot these kids get discriminated against because they have a disability but it shouldn’t be that way,” he said.