Rolling for the Rock
Car show and vendor fair proceeds will help students in area middle and high schools.
Ron “Rondo” Fernandez, Wayne Parks and Troy Weaver, left to right, pose with Rondo’s 1971 Chevy K5 Blazer during the Rolling for the Rock Program car show at ARC Marion on Southeast Maricamp Road in Ocala, Fla. on Saturday, May 16, 2026. [Bruce Ackerman/Ocala Gazette] 2026.
A little more than 80 vehicles were entered into the inaugural Rolling for the Rock car and vendor show that took place May 16 on the campus of the Arc of Marion in southeast Ocala.
The Rock program is a nonprofit outreach with volunteer staffed rooms in middle and high schools in Marion and Citrus counties, where food, clothing, shoes, school supplies, hygiene supplies and more are kept for students in need. The materials are meant to give the students tools to help build a “rock-solid” foundation to succeed.
For the event on Saturday, attendees were able to vote on 13 fan favorite awards, with each car receiving a trophy. There also were four special judged trophies, Best Vibe as voted on by the Rock board members, Most Likely to be a Chick Magnet as voted on by female staffers, Most Likely to Survive the Apocalypse as decided by male staffers and the Presenting Sponsor Award, bestowed by the Jenkins Auto Group.
The event included food trucks, a disc jockey and performances by Becky Baby and Shelby Lauren.
“We were happy with it being our first go at a car and vendor show. It was pretty cool and fun, and a little different way to do it,” said The Rock Executive Director Troy Weaver by phone on Monday.
“Proceeds will help purchase things for the program that typically are not donated, or things we like to put in our room that are new, such as undergarments. They also will help furnish a new Rock room at Vanguard High School. We’ll be putting it in this summer, so will probably use a little of that money to buy some cabinetry. And it looks like we’ll have also a Dunnellon High room coming online soon as well,” Weaver added.
“Right now, those two schools are being served by the Rolling Rock truck. They go there and take orders and then bring back things the students need. Once we add those two, we’ll have 27 schools in three counties and Citrus County is about to add three more over the summer, which is phenomenal for our growth,” Weaver explained.
“And,” he added with excitement in his voice, “another cool thing is that our program was just officially trademarked. We got our letter and certificate from the patent office, with The Rock logo with the red heart and our wording. That’s a happy, cool thing for our 10th anniversary and as we grow and make the program more effective.”
The Rock program was established by local restaurateur Ron “Rondo” Fernandez and his wife, Toby. It is aimed at helping students be “engaged, stable and confident” according to its website.
“In 2025, the Rock program served 15,749 students by providing essential items, including 4,630 clothing items, 394 pairs of shoes, 3,065 food items, 7,729 hygiene products and 29,573 school supplies, removing barriers that impact learning,” the site states.
For information about the program and ways to help, go to therockprogram.org
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