Gearheads across Rutherford County have a new date to circle on the calendar: Saturday, September 5, when the inaugural Blue Lights & Chrome car show rolls into the Lane Agri-Park Livestock Barn from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Vehicle registration runs $20 and is open from 9 a.m. to noon, while spectator admission is free and the event welcomes people of all ages.
The show is presented by the Rutherford County Sheriff's Citizens Academy Alumni Association, a volunteer non-profit founded in 1997 to strengthen community-police relations and support Sheriff's Office outreach through fundraising, according to the group's Facebook page. Organizers announced the event through the Rutherford County Sheriff's Office, which posted the details along with a promotional flyer listing the show's trophy lineup and family-friendly extras.
Entrants will compete for trophies across nine categories, including Best of Show, Sheriff's Choice, Top Classic Car, Top Modern Car, Top Import, Top Jeep/SUV, Top Motorcycle, Top Truck, and Top 25. Beyond the vehicle judging, the show will offer food trucks, door prizes, and a 50/50 raffle to keep families entertained throughout the day.
Proceeds Fund Scholarships and Youth Programs
All proceeds from Blue Lights & Chrome will benefit the Rutherford County Sheriff's Office's community outreach and scholarship programs, per the announcement. Reanna Harron, secretary of the Rutherford County Sheriff's Citizens Academy Alumni Association, said organizers hope the show becomes a new community tradition and described it as supporting a broader community cause.
Those funding priorities line up with programs the alumni association and Sheriff's Office have backed for years. The group helps raise money for the annual Shop with a Sheriff event, which partners school resource officers with local businesses to send 25 to 30 underprivileged elementary students on holiday shopping trips, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. The alumni association has also organized recreational fundraisers like the SRO Golf Tournament, which in October 2024 raised money for special needs students and high school senior scholarships at Champions Run Golf Course, as reported by Rutherford Source.
A Venue Built for Community Gatherings
Blue Lights & Chrome will take place at the Lane Agri-Park Livestock Barn, located at 315 John R. Rice Blvd. in Murfreesboro. The complex was built with Rutherford County funds and state grants and includes a livestock barn, community center, and demonstration gardens run alongside the UT-TSU Extension, per Rutherford County Government. It's also home to the Rutherford County Farmers' Market, which has operated there since 2009, making it a familiar backdrop for countywide public events.
The car show also taps into the alumni association's existing ties to local auto enthusiasts. In 2022, the group received a $1,000 donation from the Stones River Antique Automobile Club of America after volunteering at the club's 33rd Annual Swap Meet, according to a post on the Rutherford County Sheriff's Office Facebook page. That relationship helps explain why the alumni group chose a car show, rather than another golf tournament or swap meet, as its newest fundraising vehicle.
Part of a Wider Push for Youth Outreach
The Sheriff's Office has steadily expanded its youth-focused programming in recent years. As of February 2026, the agency deployed 79 School Resource Officers across public school campuses, one of its primary community engagement divisions, according to Rutherford County Schools. This summer, the department also launched a Youth Explorer Program for teenagers ages 14 to 20 interested in public safety careers, giving cadets hands-on experience alongside deputies and emergency management personnel.
Scholarship distribution has remained part of that mission as well. In May, Sheriff Mike Fitzhugh presented a Tennessee Sheriffs' Association scholarship to student John Wauchek, continuing the department's role in funding local students' higher education. Command staff and alumni association officers have also joined other local non-profit efforts this year, including the Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Center's Show Your Till fundraiser in May and Habitat for Humanity's Cookin' to Build event.
The alumni association also maintains an ongoing brick fundraiser for the Rutherford County Sheriff's Office 9/11 Memorial, which features a 3,000-pound World Trade Center steel beam dedicated in 2011, according to WGNS Radio. Engraved bricks cost between $50 and $100 and let residents honor military members, first responders, or family. Blue Lights & Chrome joins that lineup of community fundraisers as organizers look to turn a single September morning into something that sticks around for years to come.
