It’s as iconic as apple pie and the Fourth of July. An American-built muscle car, sixteen birthday candles, and a teenage girl. 

Sherrie Holland’s sixteenth birthday had all those elements. Her muscle car was a white 1988 Ford Mustang—a fox body style with red pinstriping skirting its frame. Sherrie’s dad gave it to her and then decided the hefty horsepower suited his mature driving skills better than Sherrie’s. Sherrie grew up. Moved out, built a home and a family of her own. Her son Jamison Pruitt was four years old when Sherrie’s dad passed away and the family was forced to sell the beloved muscle car.

The Holland family Mustang may have moved on, but the stories Sherrie told Jamison added smooth steel to the memories, etching the car on his mind. Twenty years later, and those memories still strong, he knew he wanted to find that car for his mom. 

Thankfully a small, local insurance company had written the Mustang’s policy and had the VIN number on file. “A buddy of mine looked it up on Carfax for me, but the last record was in 2010,” said Jamison. The Mustang had quite a road trip over its last recorded decade, going from Sherrie’s childhood home in Rivergate, to Florida, then back to Tennessee, landing in Clarksville, then onward to Benton, Illinois. “I hung up the search for a few years,” said Jamison, “I figured it was probably sold for parts or wrecked.”

“I think my chances of getting struck by lightning would have been better than finding that car,” laughed Jamison. “But then a couple months ago, Dad told me how much he really wanted to find it.” 

The hunt began again.

This time Jamison used social media to dig into the car’s past. On the “Lost Muscle Car” Facebook Page Jamison posted the Mustang’s info and pictures, sharing his mom’s story. “It took the right person seeing the post,” he said. 

Within 24 hours Jamison had a message in his inbox. One of the Mustang’s previous owners recognized the car, “I think I’ve seen this same car parked in the woods,” she wrote. The lady went over, found the car, and checked VIN numbers. They all matched.

The hardest part was yet to come, however. The property was overgrown and abandoned, “But we obviously couldn’t steal the car,” said Jamison. So, he Googled the address and then got the neighbor’s info across the street. “I kept bugging them ‘till they picked up the phone. I’m sure they thought I was a scammer.” Eventually they answered, and once they heard Jamison’s story, they gladly shared their neighbor’s contact information. 

Jamison called and found out that the 80-year-old property owner was not in good health. “Don’t worry about the sale price right now,” the weak voice urged from the other end of the phone line, “Just get up here.”

Jamison and his dad made the three hour drive that afternoon, excitement buzzing between them. “It was like a missing piece of the puzzle was found,” recounted Jamison. Nestled in the woods of small-town America, the car was covered with weeds, leaves, and pieces of trash. “Picture a town that hadn’t changed since 1930,” said Jamison, “That’s where it had been sitting for thirteen years, stuck in those woods.” A tow truck pulled the Mustang out of the bramble and the Pruitt men hauled it home.

There may not have been sixteen candles at this gift exchange. The Mustang’s paint wasn’t as white as in 1988. Its pinstriping may have a few chips. But the emotion on Sherrie’s face when it was wheeled into her drive—no doubt she was more elated than when she first slid behind that Mustang’s steering wheel. 

“It definitely felt good to see Mom having her car back,” said Jamison. Mustang Sherrie rides again, and with her all her sweet Daddy and Daughter memories thanks to her devoted family who wanted to make her dreams come true.