Contact Event Organizers:

Joseph Kelly (Kelly Insurance)  (Email Joe)
Phone: 515-278-4044
Fax: 515-278-4366

John Shelton (NutLugs.com)  (Email John)


The Foundation was developed by Christopher Reeve to help spinal repair research to continue in an effort to cure paralysis due to spinal injuries. Joseph Kelly (Kelly Insurance) and John Shelton (NutLugs.com) have each experienced serious spinal injuries and have come together to assist in raising funds for continued spinal research.

The Supercruise is a two day Classic Car event. The first day, a cruise around the greater Des Moines area will encompass multiple fund raising stops. ALL customized, modified, stock classic cars, and motorcycles are invited to join this cruise. On day two, a Classic Car show to take place at Johnston Station, IA. We are inviting you to join us for this great 2-day event.

This is a rapidly growing event to be hosted in the greater Des Moines area for years to come. We are seeking SuperCruise sponsorship from your organization. Below you will find the details of the SuperCruise. We thank you for your consideration of sponsoring this greater Des Moines fund raising event.

We are also seeking businesses interested in hosting a portion of the cruise on Saturday, August 30. This would include the cars on the cruise coming into your parking lot for 1-2 hours of socializing and then hitting the road for the next stop.

We would like all interested businesses to allow us to put a donation bucket at your place of business the week prior to the Supercruise event. These will be collected on Monday, Sept. 1.



Christopher Reeve
Go Forward
Condensed from www.christopherreeve.org

"What I do is based on powers we all have inside us; the ability to endure; the ability to love, to carry on, to make the best of what we have – and you don’t have to be a ‘Superman’ to do it." --Christopher Reeve

Christopher Reeve was born on September 25, 1952 in New York City. In 1955, he and his family moved to Princeton, New Jersey where he spent a contented childhood. Christopher matriculated to Cornell University, then on to Julliard Drama School. Christopher Reeve was an extraordinary father, a loving husband, a human rights advocate, an avid adventurer, an environmentalist, an author, a director, and an accomplished pianist. He was also a pilot who had made two solo trips across the Atlantic, an outdoor enthusiast who skied, sailed, scuba dived, played tennis, and canoed alone into the wilderness.

In 1985, at the age of 33, Christopher began horseback riding and by 1989 was competing in events, which included cross-country jumping. May 27, 1995 – Events that occur in a fraction of a second often seem to those who experience them as if they unfold in slow motion. It was in just such a flashing moment that a robust and athletic Christopher Reeve was paralyzed from a spinal cord injury so severe, that his first lucid thought was that it might be better for everyone if he were to die.

"I felt I needed to do something – not just for myself but for everyone else in the same condition. Even if I had wanted to (which I didn’t), I would never be able to forget the other patients I had met during rehab. I had seen too much of their struggles and pain. I couldn’t go home, devote my life to myself and my family, and ignore the larger picture."

Christopher defied conventional wisdom. As a result of his courage, determination, international renown, and his conviction that ‘nothing is impossible,’ Christopher initiated a sea of change. Through his leadership, the Christopher Reeve Foundation (CRF) was born and grew exponentially re-shaping the world of spinal repair research. Under his guidance, CRF’s research programs have tripled and today spans from very basic science (molecular and cellular research) to clinical application (testing and delivering promising therapies to patients).

Christopher Reeve passed away on October 10, 2004. At only 52 years old, it was far too soon. The world mourned his death, and we all reflected on the memories he left behind for each of us. No one epitomized a true hero better than Christopher Reeve. Never before has there been so much hope and optimism that cures and treatments will be found. Christopher realized momentum was on our side and the validation of his legacy is that we continue his journey on behalf of millions of people worldwide living with paralysis. It is our privilege to share his legacy, and in his memory, we band together to Go Forward.



Dana Reeve
1961-2006
Chairperson, Christopher Reeve Foundation and Actress, Singer, Activist, Motivational Speaker, Published Author

As a founding board member of the Christopher Reeve Foundation, Dana Reeve succeeded her late husband, Christopher Reeve, as chair in 2004. The Foundation is wholly committed to finding cures and treatments for spinal cord injuries as well as improving the quality of life for people living with disabilities.

Ms. Reeve established the Foundation's Quality of Life initiatives: the Quality of Life grants program and the Christopher & Dana Reeve Paralysis Resource Center. Since its inception in 1999, the Quality of Life grants program has awarded more than $8 million to support programs and projects that improve the daily lives of people living with paralysis.

In addition to her work with the CRF, Ms. Reeve also served on the boards of The Williamstown Theatre Festival, The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, TechHealth, and The Reeve-Irvine Center for Spinal Cord Research and as an advisory board member to the National Family Caregivers Association.

She received numerous awards for her work, most notably the Shining Example Award from Procter & Gamble in 1998 and an American Image Award from the AAFA in 2003. In addition, the American Cancer Society named her Mother of the Year in 2005. Ms. Reeve authored the book Care Packages, which was published by Random House in 1999.

First and foremost an actress, Ms. Reeve's many singing and acting credits included appearances on television, where she had starring roles on "Law & Order", "Oz", and "All My Children", among others. She performed in plays on Broadway, off-Broadway, and at numerous regional theatres, and performed as a singer on national television and at various New York venues. In 2000 she co-hosted a live daily talk show for women on the Lifetime Network.

Ms. Reeve graduated cum laude from Middlebury College where she also later received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters, and she pursued graduate studies in Acting at the California Institute of the Arts.

Dana Reeve passed away of lung cancer at the age of 44 on March 6, 2006. Reeve is survived by her father, Dr. Charles Morosini, sisters Deborah Morosini and Adrienne Morosini Heilman, her son Will and two stepchildren, Matthew and Alexandra.


The Super Cruise Organizers

Joe Kelly, the owner and President of the Kelly Insurance Agency, Inc. and John Shelton, the Developer and Founder of NutLugs.com, have each experienced spinal injuries which has left permanent damage to their spines. Spinal damage is literally a life-changing experience. This experience has brought together two individuals who are uniting classic car hobbyists, hot rodders, and motorcycle enthusiasts in an effort to raise funds for the Christopher Reeve Foundation. Stem cell research is imperative for spinal research to create possibilities... possible cures, possible treatments, and possible alternatives for people who suffer from injury, disease, and paralysis that ultimately could be corrected.

Joe Kelly
At age 35, when most people are getting very comfortable in their career, Joe experienced a work related injury leading to four back surgeries. In 2000 Joe was declared fully disabled, he was often bed ridden, unable to walk or leave the house, throughout the eight years since the incident. "Pain can be crippling, more than physically, pain can cripple your thought process. It can take away your dreams if you let it, I won't let it." Being forced to stay home, unable to take part in any activities that use to be commonplace, Joe could have given up. Not wanting to be defeated and greatly inspired by Christopher Reeve's fight with paralysis is what ultimately led to the development of the Kelly Insurance Agency. Joe knew a change in his career was necessary. With the discovery of a torn ligament, ruptured and degenerative discs in his back it would become impossible to continue in a physical career of any kind. The work injury literally ‘re-adjusted’ several vertebrae in his back. This adjustment caused rapid wear to the discs between the vertebrae and permanent nerve damage. Such damage has caused multiple discs to rupture. Joe changed pain medications several times to adjust to side effects and to defend the body’s tendency to become dependent on them. While researching his various pain medications, Joe found that Lyrica® was developed and discovered to be of benefit to patients suffering from nerve pain. Cymbalta®, a drug commonly used as an anti-depressant, had been found to have positive results for chronic pain sufferers. A combination of Lyrica®, Cymbalta®, Baclofen®, and a painkiller, only as needed for pain associated with excessive activity, have allowed Joe to pursue his career as an insurance professional and more importantly as a father to his children. Many Drugs with multiple uses have been discovered by research funded by the Christopher Reeve Foundation. Since Joe’s discovery of all that Christopher Reeve, and his Foundation has done and continues to do he has made it a passion to raise funds to support continued research by the Christopher Reeve Foundation. With this ‘don’t stop there’ attitude, Joe started the Kelly Insurance Agency Super Cruise in 2006 to be a benefit fund raising event for the Christopher Reeve Foundation. Joe, who is a father of 3 children, is constantly challenged with active play and supporting their activities. Joe now uses a spinal cord stimulator to relieve the chronic pain. Joe knows that more research and discoveries will have to be made in order for his life to continue as normal as possible for someone in his condition. Without ongoing treatment and new discoveries, Joe is facing a future of severe pain, limited to life in a wheelchair.

Joe Kelly - 2007
Jow experienced multiple episodes of near paralysis in the spring of 2007.  Joe sought assistance from the Twin Cities Spine Center in Minneapolis after a recommendation was made by a surgeon in Des Moines.  On August 3, 2007 Joe endured a surgery which required access to the spine from both the abdomen and the back.  The surgeon discovered severed nerve ends shredded from years of rubbing against the vertebra.  During recovery, Joe was placed in a medical coma to help alleviate the pain.  It was during this time that Joe's wife was told that Joe may not fully recover from the surgery.   By the end of 2007, Joe is still working with pain control doctors to develop a program to provide pain management so Joe can concentrate on his business and his family, rather than his pain.  Joe continues to move forward with the SuperCruise to raise funds for both the Christopher Reeve Foundation and the newly formed Joe Kelly Foundation.  In 2007, Joe has experienced very severe medical and financial concerns as he focuses on healing in addition to paying most of his surgery bills out of pocket due to the limitations of the Medicaid health care provided Joe who has been declared 'uninsurable.' due to his extent of his spinal condition.

John Shelton
Since John was 5 he could be seen playing basketball on any available basket court he could find. While playing in a pickup basketball game, John sustained an injury to his back. At the time, doctors recommended chiropractic therapy. Attempting to live a more active than normal life for the next 10 years, chronic back pain became a motivator to return to doctors for more answers. The response, ‘you are missing a disc between your bottom vertebrae (L4 and L5). There is no sign of a disc and in fact you are starting to wear out the vertebrae from bone to bone contact.’ Working with the back specialists of the Cleveland Indians, John was able to relieve the problem through a spinal fusion in 2002. The operation required a titanium plate, screws, and a separation of the discs spaced with donor bone. Today, John enjoys a controlled, yet active life. John was less than 12 months from paralysis. He now plays with his 3-year-old daughter without regard to his previous spinal problems.

Also through this life changing experience, John pursued his interest in hot rods with the development of NutLugs.com. It was from this website that Joe and John have met. Through their shared stories and startling accounts of ‘like experiences’ Joe recognized that through the association of NutLugs that he may be able to get assistance pulling together an even larger crowd to the SuperCruise. John, with his 7 years of car show judging experience, eagerly jumped in to assist. Today the vision is to bring thousands of hobbyists together in Iowa and in a couple of years expand the event to Cleveland, OH where John lives. As the event expands, there are some attractive features in the works for future events.

It is through the interest and hobby of hot rods that originally united Joe and John. Their spinal experiences brought them closer and then the united effort of the Super Cruise to bring the community together to raise research funds for the Christopher Reeve Foundation. The Super Cruise has turned out to be a two-day event; a successful event, thanks to you, the participant, the contributor and the Sponsors.

Thank You. See you next year!