The Joyride Foundation began with a simple observation: the people who know how to keep classic cars alive are getting older, the young people who could carry that knowledge forward rarely get the chance to learn it, and all around us are people — kids in hospitals, seniors in care, families having a hard year — who could use a moment of pure joy. A classic car, it turns out, can answer all three at once.
Founders Isaac Haugen and Stuart Odell set out to build an organization where classic-car owners could share what they love — the cars, the craft, and the joy of the open road — in a way that gives back. What started as conversations among enthusiasts became a California nonprofit with a threefold mission: preserve automotive heritage, teach the next generation, and spread joy to the people who need it most.