Help Bring Joaquin Garay III Back to VW Funfest 2025!

**05/26/2025 URGENT UPDATE: Do not donate without first reading the May 26th 2025 update below. The remainder of this page has been left untouched for archival and transparency purposes. - Mike D.**

Help Bring Joaquin Garay III Back to VW Funfest 2025!

Campaign Update – May 2025: Closer Than Ever!

Hey Herbie Community and VW Funfest Attendees,

We’re excited to share some amazing updates since launching our campaign to Bring Joaquin Garay III Back to VW Funfest:

We’ve already raised nearly $600 — thank you to everyone who’s donated so far! Your early support has laid the foundation for something truly special.

Updated Goal Breakdown:

Thanks to generous support from the team at Mid America Motorworks, we have refined our campaign goals:

$3,500 to cover Joaquin’s appearance fee and airfare

$1,800 to benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, a cause close to the Mid America Motorworks team

Mid-America Motorworks has stepped up to cover Joaquin’s hotel and car rental, helping us focus on what’s left to raise — and giving us a major boost!

New Deadline:

We’ve extended the campaign to Friday, June 13th, just one week before VW Funfest 2025, to give us more time to reach our goal.

Why This Is Special

Your support does not just help bring Joaquin back — it helps unlock a once-in-a-lifetime Herbie experience:

Meet Joaquin Garay III in person! Autographs and photo ops will be free for attendees.

Live Reading: “Car-Boy-Girl” – For the first time ever, we’ll host a live reading of Gordon Buford’s original screenplay that inspired The Love Bug. This rare script, preserved by the Herbie The Love Bug Collectibles Museum, will be recorded and shared on social media so fans everywhere can enjoy the magic!

Hang out with fellow VW & Herbie fans at one of the largest VW shows in the Central U.S.

❤️ Support a great cause: Help raise awareness and funds for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

We’re making great progress — but we still need your help to make it all happen.

Please donate, share, and help us spread the word!

Every dollar brings us closer to an unforgettable Funfest and helps support an incredible cause.

Thank you for being part of the journey — we cannot wait to see you in Effingham this June!

With gratitude,

Mike Dyer & Erik Elmauer

$5,300 Needed by Friday, June 13th!

Hey Herbie fans! We’re Mike “Maniac Mike” Dyer from St. Louis, Missouri, and Erik Elmauer from the Herbie The Love Bug Collectibles Museum in Ontario, Canada. As longtime Herbie enthusiasts, we’re excited to celebrate two big milestones in 2025— the 20th anniversary of Herbie Fully Loaded and the 45th anniversary of Herbie Goes Bananas!

To mark the occasion, Mid America Motorworks in Effingham, Illinois, is hosting a special screening of Herbie Fully Loaded during Funfest for Air-Cooled VW 2025 on Saturday, June 21st. This event has been one of the largest Volkswagen gatherings in the Central U.S. for over 25 years, with their screen-used Street Racer Herbie as a star attraction every year.

But we want to make this celebration even bigger— by bringing back actor Joaquin Garay III! Best known as Paco in Herbie Goes Bananas, Joaquin was a guest at Funfest in 2004 and 2005 and has remained a beloved ambassador of the Herbie legacy. He loves meeting fans, signing memorabilia, and celebrating The Love Bug’s incredible history.

How You Can Help:

We need to raise $5,300 by May 31st, 2025 to cover Joaquin’s appearance fee, airfare, and hotel stay. If we exceed our goal, all extra funds will be donated to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, a cause close to the hearts of the Mid America Motorworks team.

Donate any amount—every dollar helps bring Joaquin to the event!

Share this campaign with fellow VW & Herbie fans.

Join us at Funfest to meet Joaquin and celebrate Herbie history!

Let’s make VW Funfest 2025 unforgettable! Donate today and help bring Joaquin back to Effingham for this once-in-a-lifetime event.

Thank you for your support! We can’t wait to see you in June!

Sincerely,

Mike Dyer & Erik Elmauer

*Photos courtesy of Mid America Motorworks.