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Music filled the air and polished vehicles lined the parking lot Saturday at 1836 Texas Kitchen in Tyler for its annual car and bike show.

The Montez-Cooper 1836 Texas Kitchen Classic Car Show, in its third year, is sponsored by restaurant owner Mundo Villapudua and C. Cooper Homes owner Chris Cooper.

This year’s event benefited local veteran organization Guardian Outdoors Division.

The Guardian Outdoors Division aims to help veterans who struggle with PTSD and other mental health issues associated with their time in service by taking them on hunting and fishing trips and sharing with them the healing powers of the outdoors.

Guardian Outdoors Division founder Ken Stuchell said he started the organization after the loss of several of his fellow Marines to suicide and a hunting trip that helped him cope.

“I was fortunate enough to get invited on a hunting trip, and I saw the benefit of it, and I wanted to give back that same experience that I had to other veterans,” he said. “We help veterans both local and across the United States.

“We aim to do one hunt a month. We a do a couple big trips that are out West, like elk and bear hunting, and then we do the majority of them here locally with hunting and fishing trips.”

Stuchell said close friends Villapudua and Cooper saw the importance of his mission and wanted to help through then car show.

“They are great friends of ours and saw the benefit in our organization for the local community and reached out said they would love to support,” he said. “We are 100% self-funded, and this is our first-ever benefit to raise money, so we are really excited to have some help.”

Stuchell said the organization started in 2016, and he is grateful for the funds raised through the car show.

“We’ve been doing this since 2016, these elk hunts and other hunts for veterans, and this is the first time we’ve ever had help like this car show,” he said. “Grateful is not even the word. I’s unbelievable to have somebody who believes in the cause, sees the benefits of it, and really knows that it’s making a difference.”

A total of 176 cars and motorcycles entered the car and bike show. The event also included vendors, food trucks, music and more.

For information on Guardian Outdoors Division, visit www.guardianoutdoorsdivision.com.

To see more photos from the event, go here.