Why We Do What We Do

About JOTR

Jeep Lovers and Their Kindness

When it was created 10 years ago, we knew the mission would be to take all of the positive energy from Jeep owners and help others. That is exactly what we have done. We are going on our 10th year donating to Toys for Tots and have supported them with nearly $1 million dollars in donations over that time. We have also raised money for Breast Cancer, Heart Disease, St. Baldricks, St. Jude, local food pantries and we’ve supported each other during COVID by providing ALDI gift cards. What our group has accomplished is nothing short of amazing!

Toys Donated

0.9M+

Dollars Donated

Families Supported

Total Jeeps Attended

* These numbers are approximate representations of our activity over the years

Our History

October 2012

Looking for other Jeepers. After attending many local car shows, my children were tired of seeing only hotrods and standard muscle cars. Apparently our kids have Jeep blood running through their veins, they wanted to see JEEPS. I searched for other local Jeep clubs and events to bring the kids to. I did find one other local club, but they did not have any scheduled events coming up. This Jeep club helped me connect with a few other members who were looking for a low key Jeep gathering as well.

November 2012

Jeeps on the Run was born. A fellow Jeep owner and myself collaborated and a few days later Jeeps On The Run was born. A facebook page was created, and Jeep lovers started to flock in. Our intent was to just have a “Jeep Meet” for dinner as a way to get a few Jeeps together, and for my children a way to see “Just Jeeps” vs the typical hotrods found at the cruise nights.

As we created this event, the engagement and interest grew by the day, what went from a few Jeeps grew into about 35 (much more than we ever anticipated). It was at this point we thought we should do something good with the event considering we were getting so much interest.

December 2012

1st Annual Jeeps On The Run Toys For Tots event. It was at this point the first ever Jeeps On The Run Toys For Tots event was born. Participants purchased vehicle flags, event shirts and registered to join. The requirement was for each Jeep to bring one unwrapped toy to the event.

The event was a huge success, we filled a Suburban full of toys, we had some amazing donations for raffle prizes and we caravanned to five different establishments before the event was over for the day. We collected hundreds of toys as well as about $5,000.00 in donations in which we used to purchase more toys.

July 2022

Fast Forward 10 Years. Our JOTR family has grown to over 8,000 Jeepers! We went from 35 Jeeps to over 850 in attendance at the event. This is our 5th year in which we will be raffling off a Jeep vehicle. We have reached the attention of not only our local supporting Jeep dealership (Ray CDJR), but of Jeep corporate as well.

A Jeep Family!

Mike Missak has been a Jeep lover since he was 17 years old. He has passed his love for Jeeps on to his wife April and his kids, Cailyn and Charlie. Watch our video to learn more about how Jeeps on the Run came to be.

About Our Founder, Mike Missak

Mike Missak grew up in the Chicago area and have always considered this home. He married his amazing wife, April and they have two beautiful children, Cailyn and Charlie. JOTR has become a family affair that they look forward to each year. From the planning of the events, to the Jeep caravans, to the shopping for toys each December, they look forward to being a part of Jeeps on the Run.

Terrie Schoonover

In fall of 2013 Terrie Schoonover partnered with Mike on a mutual passion of Toys for Tots. She worked tirelessly partnering with other, local, Jeep clubs for their partnership and attendance. In addition, she worked closely lining up many of our original convoy stops before we got too big! While less active with the club today, her passion carries on and we all look back fondly on our first years!

Terri Schoonover, Mike MIssak and Cailyn Missak at Toys for Tots event

Nick Buriegi

As JOTR was just taking off, Mike & Terrie invited Nick Buriegi to be part of the crew and the 3 started working together with great zeal! Nick worked closely with off-road clubs to boost attendance, restaurants for new stops, and helped map the best routes!! In addition, Nick has led many JOTR off-road fundraisers over the years raising money for cancer, heart, thyroid and other diseases.

As the event grew larger, Nick focused his efforts as Captain of the Road Crew, building a rockstar team, and getting participants safely and quickly parked, inside, dismissed, and helped along the parade route.