In light of the holiday season, two auto repair companies donated refurbished vehicles for families in need.
In Redlands, Calif., Caliber Collision made its fourteenth recycled ride donation to the family of an 11-year-old boy with leukemia. The refurbished 2009 Honda Civic was filled with gifts and toys from local businesses for 11-year-old Isaiah and his 8-year-old sister, Angelique. The car was donated by the Automobile Club of Southern California and refurbished by Caliber team members who volunteered personal time to repair the vehicle in addition to collecting the donated items to fill the car.
"Having to deal with a child's life-threatening illness is difficult enough, but having to do so without having reliable transportation is unimaginable to those of us who take transportation for granted," says David Goldstein, Caliber Collision vice president of operations. "Our goal at Caliber Collision is to repair vehicles to restore our customers to the rhythm of their lives, and we hope this vehicle will do the same for the Isaiah and his family."
"We are proud to partner with Caliber Collision and Loma Linda University Children's Hospital to ease the burden of transportation for this deserving family," says Rick Lewis, unit manager for claims at the Automobile Club of Southern California. "We hope this gift of transportation will give Isaiah and his family a special reason to celebrate and look forward to continued healing in the coming year."
Isaiah expressed his gratitude on behalf of his family, saying, "This is awesome. We got a brand-new car, we really needed it. Thank you, everyone; have a very merry Christmas and just live life to the fullest because life is awesome, so don't take anything for granted."
The car will help the family make the 100-mile roundtrip drive to see Isaiah's doctors at the Loma Linda University Children's Hospital in Loma Linda, Calif.
Auto Angels, in association with the Mid Florida Chapter of Florida Auto Body Collision Alliance (FACA), donated 15 refurbished vehicles to 15 local families last week. People receiving the donated services were chosen from more than 260 applicants who were determined to be unable to otherwise obtain the needed repairs to their personal vehicles.
"It was difficult for the Auto Angels Selection Committee when so many have real need," states committee member Jenna Stewart.
This year's Auto Angels co-chairman, David Stewart of Stewart Auto, says, "On behalf of FACA and the Auto Angels program and the recipients, I would like to thank each and every one who contributed their time and resources to help make this year's Auto Angel Program a resounding success."
Ray Gunder of Gunder's Auto Center and Auto Angels co-chairman adds, "I didn't think it could get better than last year's effort, but it did. Those who contributed to making this year's program success are true heroes in my book."
