‘He had a very big heart’: Auto show to honor avid car fan

DANVILLE, Ill., (WCIA) — This weekend, Amy Thompson is remembering her son, Colton Wright, with a car show at the Village Mall in Danville. 

He was shot and killed by someone he knew while in Florida in December 2021. He was 24 years old. 

Thompson said her son had a big heart and was caring, loving and always looking out for others. When she heard of his death, she said it just did not seem real. 

Wright loved cars, trucks, motorcycles and golf carts from a young age. In fact, he bought his first golf cart with his own money when he was 10 years old. He loved fast cars, his favorite was a Mustang. 

“He helped so many people throughout the years. Even at the age of 12 he was going to car dealerships and helping, for instance, my sister still has her car today that he helped pick out,” Thompson said. 

They have many family memories at the Village Mall in Danville from over the years. From shopping at Sears to seeing new movies at AMC, it is only fitting they are hosting this car show in the parking lot. 

Cinnamyn Keith, the mall’s property manager, helped Thompson plan the event. She said she enjoys bringing events to the mall that can help people. 

The mall has hosted car shows before, but she feels that more people will be at this car show. She also expects a lot more kids at this event because of the golf carts that will be there. 

There will be 75-100 different kinds of vehicles for people to explore. They will also have food trucks and door prizes thanks to donations. 

The money raised from this event will go toward an annual scholarship for a student at the Danville Area Community College majoring in auto mechanics. 

So far, 400 people from Illinois and Indiana have said they are going. This shows how much Wright was loved and cared for by the people around him. 

For more information about the event this Saturday, visit the Facebook page.