CASCADE, Md. — Fort Ritchie hosted the Bill Coyle Memorial Cruise on Saturday, drawing car enthusiasts and community members for a full day of activities, live entertainment, and food.
More than 120 vehicles were on display, ranging from antique and classic cars to modern builds, trucks, tractors, motorcycles, and Jeeps. Awards were presented across each category, including a Best in Show honor.
Attendees enjoyed live music from 11 Minutes Out throughout the day, along with a variety of food vendors. Participating trucks included Antietam Dairy, Cracken Catering, Grab Smash & Go, My Sweet Choice LLC, and Wild Fizz. Raffles and family-friendly activities continued into the evening.
The annual event serves as both a celebration of automotive culture and a tribute to Bill Coyle, bringing together residents and visitors for a day of community connection and entertainment.
Coyle was an employee for 38 years at the SGI “Grit Mill” in Blue Ridge Summit helping to keep the plant running to supply aggregates for the roofing, construction, and road building industries. Prior to working at the “Grit Mill,” he worked for D.L. George and Sons of Waynesboro and Sanders Market of Cascade. He also operated a part-time lawn mowing, landscaping, and snow plowing business serving his friends and neighbors in the Cascade Mountain Community.
Coyle faithfully helped Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny at annual community and church events and loved helping kids. He was a faithful servant of the Blue Ridge Summit Free Library; and was also a member of the Sons of the American Legion Post 239 of Cascade, the Blue Ridge Summit Sportsman’s Association, the South Mountain Rod and Gun Club, and the Hub City Model A Ford Club. He enjoyed gardening; feeding and watching birds, especially Purple Martins; classic cars; bidding at Hobbs Auctions; spending afternoons at Pen Mar Park; and most of all, being with his friends and family.
He died in 2023 of a rare form of leukemia.
