JASPER -- A cross-country road trip with the family is part and parcel of the American dream, and that's just what the O'Brien family decided to do. But they didn't take just any car.
Husband and wife, Shawn and Kenna, 6-year-old son Cormac and 4-year-old daughter Birdie were sitting in the shade in the park outside the Newton County Courthouse one recent Sunday morning, the Harrison Daily Times reported.
Across the street sat their ride, a vintage 1959 Chevrolet Parkwood station wagon. The gleaming white car was modernized just a bit with a hashtag on the rear side window -- #obriensgoingforbroke.
They set out from their Torrance, Calif., home 38 days earlier on a road trip to Florida and Disney World to celebrate Birdie's recent birthday.
On their way home, they found that Arkansas was their favorite of the 20 states they'd traversed in their journey so far.
They could have traveled interstates all the way, but Shawn O'Brien said those highways lead only to chain restaurants and shopping centers. They decided to take two-lane highways as much as possible.
"That's how you see America," he said.
They'd just come from Hot Springs on Arkansas 7. They had only spent a handful of nights in motels along the way, opting to stay with friends or camp out, but they treated themselves to a night at the Gordon Motel the previous night.
Shawn said the Parkwood, which he's had for more than 10 years, doesn't have air conditioning, so they would make fairly frequent stops. If they saw a stream or lake along the trip, they detour to take a dip and cool off.
The O'Briens were on their way to his grandfather's original home town of Berryville.
One thing that has been a constant on the trip is the Parkwood itself.
"Everywhere we go," Kenna O'Brien said, "people ask about the car."
She said the curiosity can occasionally be a problem, like when they have just gotten the kids down for a nap and are awakened by a gathering crowd.
And the Parkwood just might come in handy on the way back to California.
Shawn O'Brien said one of their future stops will be at the Kustom Kemps of America Leadsled Spectacular car show in Salina, Kan., where the Parkwood is entered with the possibility of a cash prize. Kenna O'Broen said she hopes the Parkwood wins for one main reason.
"Gas money to get home," she said.
NW News on 07/27/2015