MANDEVILLE, LA — If you’re an especially big fan of one particular movie, you might own an item connected to the film. Maybe it’s a poster on your wall or toys for your kids (think Star Wars).
Michael Adams takes being a movie fan to a higher level.
“As a boy, when I was younger, I liked dinosaurs,” Adams says. “I liked the movie, like most kids do.”
Adams is studying engineering at the University of New Orleans, and he’s done an incredible job turning a stock 2003 stock Jeep into a nearly screen accurate Jurassic Park movie prop.
“We had a local body shop stencil out and paint the stripes, and they put the decals on it.”
From there, Adams had the Jeep’s mirrors and rims painted and other components installed like a light bar and radio antenna.
“Typically, I don’t notice kids are staring at it until I can hear them screaming at their parents that there’s a Jurassic Park Jeep in the next lane over,” Adams says of the looks he gets while driving his Jeep. “And I’ll get the same reaction out of adults, too.”
But Adams uses his Jeep for more than getting around Mandeville and enjoying the reactions from others on the road.
“My favorite thing to do is to take it to charity events,” he says.
For the past two years, Adams has taken his Jeep to the Comic Con in New Orleans event. For a $1 donation, people can take a picture with it.
“The proceeds are donated to Saint Joseph’s Hospice Foundation,” he says.
Adams has given every penny of the donations to charity, more than $1,500 and counting.
With the Jeep project essentially done, Adams sees himself trying similar projects in the future.
“I may do the SUV from Jurassic Park, the Ford Explorer tour vehicle.”
Once he’s out of school and is in the working world, this future engineer has another dream project, recreating the DeLorean from Back to the Future.
For now, he’s happy using his Jeep that pays tribute to the past to help others in the future.