KANNAPOLIS — A benefit cruise-in and car show is planned for Sept. 7, with proceeds going to help with medical expenses for 15-year-old Nick Smith who underwent a heart transplant earlier this year and remains in the hospital.

Eastwood Baptist Church, located at 320 Cook St., Kannapolis, where the family attends, will serve as the host for Cruisin’ For Nick, which is scheduled for that Sept. 7 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. 

There is a $20 entry fee for those who would like to participate in the car show, and trophies will be awarded. 

In addition to the cruise-in and car show, the event will have breakfast and lunch for sale, beginning with breakfast at 8 a.m.  and hot dogs from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. a 50/50 raffle, T-shirts for sale, a DJ, door prizes, gifts bags and a raffle with many donated items including a smoker grill and a large television. Those wishing to donate items for the raffle may continue to do so.

In the event of rain, the event will be held Sept. 14.

For more information about the show, call Mike Campbell at 704-202-3523 or Rick Sloop at 980-271-1765.

Sloop said that Smith is a fan of older cars and trucks and that he just recently turned 15 and has been looking forward to getting his first truck, “and so this is one thing we are doing for him.”

On the event flier, it noted that Smith was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome. As he grew older, he underwent three surgeries with the last surgery resulting in a heart block and pacemaker. In September 2023, he was diagnosed with stage three cirrhosis of the liver and heart failure. He received a new heart on Feb. 10; however, he went into cardiac arrest after the transplant, which led to a brain injury and Dystonia, a movement disorder.

“They are just now trying to get him to rehab,” Sloop said. 

Smith, a student at Jay M. Robinson High School, is the son of Anthony and Robin Smith. He has a sister, Morgan Smith, who is a sophomore at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro.