DEARBORN, Mich – With 2024 being the 60^th anniversary year for the Ford Mustang, clubs all over the globe are preparing special events to commemorate this iconic car’s birthday. From car shows, cruise-ins and meet-ups to driving events and special meetings, Mustang clubs are pulling out all the stops to help their members better connect with the world’s favorite pony car. One such group, the Mustang Owners Club of SouthEastern Michigan (MOCSEM) – one of the largest and most active clubs in North America – wanted to get an early start on the year’s festivities by setting up a special guest speaker for its monthly general membership meeting in early March. Being that their meetings are held in Ford’s own backyard in Dearborn, the club asked if Ford could have its new Mustang Brand Manager, Joe Bellino, come and speak to its members about Mustang as it enters its 60^th year.

Joe agreed to come to the weeknight evening meeting and, being that MOCSEM’s meeting place inside the showroom of Gateway Classic Cars is not far from Ford World Headquarters, he figured he’d bring something special to help introduce himself to this group of dedicated Mustang owners. That something special was a brand-new, fully loaded 2024 Mustang GT that he was able to drive right into the showroom for a little bit of Mustang “Show-and-Tell” along with his remarks.

Well, as you might imagine, this didn’t turn out to be a run-of-the mill guest-speaking appearance as Joe invited the members to get up out of their seats for an up-close-and-personal walkaround of the Mustang GT – with most of them happily crowding around the car to ask questions and give Joe some owner feedback. Eventually club president Mike Rey got everyone seated again so that Joe could talk about the new Mustang lineup and his plans for the year. To Bellino’s credit, he stayed for the whole meeting and even met and chatted with more members afterward – include one young 12-year-old who is already a Mustang YouTuber!

It soon became time for Joe to hop in the Mustang GT, fire it up and pull it out of the meeting room and drive off into the night. Members all spoke of how cool it was that Ford would have its Mustang brand manager not only visit with them in person, but to also bring the latest product out of the Flat Rock Assembly Plant with him. “The best thing,” one club member commented after the GT’s taillights disappeared from the parking lot, “was that he listened to us as much as he talked. That’s a good sign!”

Indeed, members well-know that one of the reasons Mustang has been successful for six decades now is because Ford has listened to its owner base. And while it was fun for them to crawl all over a new Mustang GT, while he was there it was also comforting for them to know that after meeting Ford’s new Mustang Brand Manager Joe Bellino, they feel the future of their favorite Ford is in good hands.

FORD PERFORMANCE PHOTOS / COURTESY JOHN M. CLOR