Oliver Conover

“Why not Lehigh Acres we’ve got a nice large modern hotel in town, several great golf courses and we’re a half hour from the beach and closer to other attractions in downtown Fort Myers?” asked Ollie Conover.

He’s talking about the Mercedes-Benz International M-100 group which plans to hold its 2011 gathering in Lehigh.

“And we’re talking about 75 members and their families who will be attending this event in Lehigh,” Conover said. He is the retired executive director of the Lehigh Acres Chamber of Commerce so spreading the word about Lehigh is a usual thing for him.

Conover said the 2011 annual rally will be from June 15 to June 19 and the official hotel will be the Microtel Inn & Suites on Business Way.

Conover’s son, Gerrett Conover is the membership secretary for the International M-100 Group and recently they were talking about where the group could meet next year and Conover jumped to the chance to offer Lehigh Acres.

It’s a big deal for owners and lovers of Mercedes-Benz automobiles from all around the country. In the past they have met in California, South Carolina, Colorado and St. Paul, Minn, Conover’s sons said.

“We have a lot to offer here in Lehigh. A lot of these guys play golf and we have some of the best golf courses in Lee County,” Conover said. “It seems like a natural for me and all of them will be excited to see the local beaches and the historic places like the Edison and Ford Estates in downtown Fort Myers,” he said.

According to Conover, the tentative schedule includes a showing and judging of the cars at Majestic golf Club on Saturday, June 18. This will be open to the public at no charge and it is expected that there will be some vendors/sponsors. Consideration is being given to inviting other classic cars to join the show, Conover said.

In the past year or so, Majestic Golf Club has hosted other car shows that have been attended by big crowds of people from Lehigh and other areas of the county and they have always been a success. A former honorary mayor of Lehigh, Marylou Land, raised enough money from one of the shows to win the coveted title to represent her community at several events.

On the evening of June 15, Conover said a dinner will be held featuring two Mercedes-Benz veteran employees who live and work in Lehigh Acres Siggi Lorenz and Eugen Borosch. It is also hoped that part-time resident Peter Ruhl will participate. He is a collector of Mercedes-Benz automobiles and is an active parti9cipat in MB functions in Europe.

Conover said there will be at least 75 members and maybe more and their families that will attend.

“That is a large group of people to come to Lehigh and I think they will like it here in Southwest Florida,” he said.

The Group expects 20 to 45 automobiles to be at the rally, too.

The International M-100 Group is officially recognized by Mercedes-Benz, Stuttgart, Germany, as an affinity group dedicated to the preservation and enjoyment of Mercedes-Benz 1964-1979 models: 300 SEL 6.3, 600 and 450SEL 6.9.

Conover said these cars represent the pinnacle of Mercedes’ engineering in that era.

Rare and expensive, these cars were manufactured for governments, heads of state and business leaders. Oliver Conover’s son is a collector and owns a 1937 model once owned by a general in the military. He also drives a new model, Conover said.

“These are a great bunch of friendly people and they are dedicated to the Mercedes-Benz. They love their cars,” Conover said. The International M-100 Group is based in Reading, Pa,