Its incredibly rewarding to see things that start small and end up becoming far bigger than you ever realised they would.

What began as a few BBQs at an old shed in Co. Kilkenny, a handful of friends, and a shared love of cars has slowly turned into something far more than I ever expected it to be.

This is the third year we’ll be hosting our annual Cars and Coffee, the first occurring in 2022. We then missed two years due to my travelling.

And in a strange way, it still feels a little unreal saying that out loud.

Because this event was never really built with numbers in mind. It wasn’t about scale, or fame, or trying to create something bigger than it needed to be. It came from the kind of gatherings that happen naturally when the right people end up in the same place — cars parked up, a little food on the go, conversations that drift long into the evening, and that feeling that maybe, for a few hours, everything is exactly as it should be.

Over time, that turned into more people, more cars and outgrew a space that I felt I was synonymous with for quite a long time..

A place for tastefully modified JDM cars. A place for the kind of cars and the kind of people that don’t always fit neatly into the usual mould. A safe haven, really, for enthusiasts from the south east of Ireland and beyond.

And every year, people make the effort to come.

Some travel from nearby. Some travel a long way. We’ve had people come from as far as Sligo, just to spend a few hours in the company of people who speak the same language, without needing to say much at all.

That’s always been one of the best parts of hosting this event.

Not just seeing the cars, but seeing the faces you only get to catch up with once a year. The people who drift in and out of your life through the changing of the seasons, but never really leave the picture. The conversations pick up where they left off. The years pass, but the feeling stays familiar.

This year, we brought this event back to SignalBox Coffee in Kilmacthomas, Co. Waterford on July 25th.

Sorcha and the team over there have been so nice to accommodate us every year and i've enjoyed seeing their business grow into a true greenway staple in the heart of Kilmacthomas.

The same sense of community. The same quiet appreciation for good cars and good people. The same hope that for a few hours, we can all step away from the noise and just enjoy being around something real & something genuine.

And as always, we’ll be raising money for the Solas Cancer Support Centre. Cancer has touched us all in one way or another and the service they provide to the people of the south east of Ireland should not be underestimated.

It’s not a huge donation.

But that was never really the point.

Solas provides something important for Waterford and the south east — something steady, something human, something that reaches people when they need it most. And whether the amount is large or small, it still feels right to contribute in whatever way we can.

I’ve always believed that the things worth doing don’t have to be loud to matter.