LEHIGH VALLEY, Pa. — With help from local charities, Mack Trucks marked the arrival of the new Disney/Pixar movie “CARS” with a special showing to about 250 young people in the company’s home area of Lehigh Valley on June 10.

The free screening celebrated the nationwide release of the latest Pixar animated film, which features a truck character named “Mack,” inspired by the classic MACK Super-Liner model of the mid-1980s. Veteran actor John Ratzenberger, the knowledgeable letter carrier of “Cheers” fame, voices the big rig character.

In partnership with the United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley, Mack issued special “Mack”-themed tickets to partner agencies serving at-risk youth in the community. The agencies then distributed the tickets, which gave their clients “red-carpet access” to the invitation-only Saturday morning screening of the film.

Guests attending the screening were greeted at the theatre by the official Mack Bulldog and the company’s “Bulldog Man” mascot; as well as a number of Mack employees, who volunteered their Saturday morning to help stage the event.

The children also got the chance to explore the company’s new Pinnacle highway tractor and Granite MP construction truck models, on display outside the theatre complex near Easton, Pa. Following the movie, guests received an official CARS poster provided by Disney and a limited edition T-shirt featuring the image of “Mack the Truck” from the film.