Don Brown, 68, of Charlotte, out (on his birthday!) with his woodworking partner, Brad Warlick, 64, of Indian Trail, doing business at Matthews Business Center. On this day, the popular 1961 ballad, “Crazy” by Patsy Kline, was blaring out the window as he proudly displayed his prized 1951 Ford stakebed truck with a flathead V8 engine. Purchased four years ago from some “guys fixing it up in Columbia, South Carolina, and making it road-worthy,” it gets 15 mpg and goes no more than 45 mph.

Originally used to haul hay in Kentucky and North Carolina, Brown’s contribution is the license plates (previously used on taxis, buses, trucks, etc.) from all 50 states, given to him by people and purchased at antique stores and flea markets. Most prized plates are the one from his uncle in Kansas and the other one from the county of Bedford, VA, which, coincidentally, is his father’s namesake. “This is a friendly vehicle,” he said. “It attracts attention from everyone. Everybody wants to say, ‘hi’ and take my photo.”