TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. – Hagerty Insurance Agency, the largest, fastest-growing specialty insurance program for collector cars, announces that a portion of each Hagerty Protection Network (HPN) membership will be used to build the newly established Hagerty Fund for Historic Vehicle Preservation and Education (http://www.hagertyfund.org/).

“We are committed to preserving and protecting collector cars, our great automotive history and the enjoyment of the car hobby,” says McKeel Hagerty, president of Hagerty. “Through their tremendous show of solidarity in the face of threatening legislation, Hagerty Protection Network members have displayed their dedication to the preservation of the hobby. It seemed a natural progression to establish the non-profit fund.”

The Hagerty Fund is organized through the Grand Traverse Regional Community Foundation (http://www.gtrcf.org/), a charitable public foundation dedicated to facilitating philanthropy by supporting a diverse collection of funds.

The fund’s mission is to promote the preservation and growth of the collector car hobby through automotive educational scholarships, historic vehicle museum and library support and collector car safety programs. As the initial step in launching the Hagerty Fund, a grant of a $5,000 annual scholarship will be given to a qualified second-, third- or fourth-year student enrolled in the Automotive Restoration Technology Program at McPherson College, a private, liberal arts college located in McPherson, KS.

The college’s auto restoration program was established in 1976 through the generosity of local entrepreneur and antique and classic car collector Gaines H. “Smokey” Billue. His goal was to establish a world-class center for the study and practice of authentic automobile restoration that would prepare students for leadership roles in the professional restoration industry and collector car hobby.

Hagerty has established a six-member Board of Advisors headed by President McKeel Hagerty, Sydney McManus, Hagerty’s director of public relations and legislative affairs, and four additional advisors and hobby enthusiasts, including:

• Ken Gross – former director of the Petersen Automotive Museum, and renowned contributing automotive writer for such noted publications as Robb Report, Playboy, Popular Mechanics, The Rodders Journal and Automotive Industries. He is also author of The Illustrated BMW Buyer’s Guide and Ferrari 250GT, The Short-Wheelbase Berlinettas, and has served as a judge at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, The Concours on Rodeo, and the Louis Vuitton Concours d’Elegance in New York City.
  
  
• John Hollansworth – a former sprint and Indy Car driver, and dedicated auto collector, Hollansworth regularly participates in The Great Race, a 4,200-mile endurance race for vintage and collector cars. He recently competed in his 1917 Peerless “Green Dragon” in the cross-country race at age 72. In September 2003, he also will relive a part of pioneering racer Ab Jenkins’ legacy when he races his 1934 Pierce Arrow across the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah.
  
  
• Bruce Knox – current sales and partnership consultant with Kruse International and vice president of Kruse Asset Management. He has spent most of his 16-year career in the collector car industry, previously serving as COO and CMO of eBay Motor’s collector car subsidiary, Kruse, Inc., as well as working closely with auction companies like Kruse International, Barrett-Jackson, RM Classic Cars and G. Potter King. He has also developed and executed marketing partnerships for the Bondurant School of High Performance Driving, Carroll Shelby Licensing, Shelby American, NADA appraisal Guides and Passport Transport.
  
  
• Keith Martin – current editor of Sports Car Market, an automotive correspondent for –Speed Channel and the well-known automotive writer for The New York Times. Martin has hosted numerous specials on collector cars, co-hosted the live television coverage of the Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale auction for the past six years, and has appeared as a collector car expert on MSNBC, CNN and the NBC Nightly News with Ted Koppel. He has judged numerous concours including Meadow Brook, Amelia Island and the Louis Vuitton Classic, operated a restoration shop and driven in many vintage car events including the Mille Miglia, the Tour Auto, the California Mille and New England 1000.

“The Hagerty Fund will grow substantially due to the active participation in the Hagerty Protection Network, which we expect to reach 100,000 members by the end of the year,” says Hagerty. “Since this unique grant program is continuously funded by the network’s growing membership, we can actively focus our efforts on grant making, not fundraising.”

Hagerty Insurance Agency provides inexpensive insurance for antique and vintage autos, modified and custom cars, street rods, sports cars and exotics, as well as vintage boats. The company has been in the insurance business for five decades and in the specialty insurance field for nearly 20 years. As the leading insurer of collectible vehicles and boats in the United States, Hagerty provides superior insurance coverage and service to collector car and boat owners. Hagerty’s motto, “Be Protected, Not Just Insured,” is supported by many of the company’s Hagerty Protection Network services, products and resources. For more information on Hagerty Insurance Agency and the Hagerty Protection Network, call 800-922-4050 or visit http://www.hagerty.com/.