On February 4th, 2011 Team Cars 4 Causes® members donated their time and hand crafted valentine cards with paper doilies, glitter and foam heart stickers. 140 different Valentines were created and each had a love quote on it.
On February 14, 2011, Team Cars 4 Causes visited two homes of our most treasured citizens, The Aegis and The Venturan in Ventura, California. Each team member carried handmade Valentine cards and sweet Valentine confections to surprise the residents on this special day. A balloon artist joined the team to craft personalized Valentine themed balloons for willing participants. Team Cars 4 Causes members split into two groups and joined the residents for lunch. Our senior Valentines were very happy to receive the handmade cards and to know that outside of their community there are those of us who care. Our balloon artist created flowers and swans that made the residents smile from ear to ear. One woman smiled so big it made everyone else smile too! During our visit we met two love birds Tom and Betty Ann Bruno who shared a kiss over lunch that we caught on camera! Our most beloved Valentine was Grace, who will turn 100 years old this year. We made a special balloon rose for her that she appreciated so much she squeezed it until it almost “POPPED.” Other residents took joy in wearing their Valentine cards on their heads; admittedly a strange custom, but adorable all the same.
Some of the residents at the The Venturan were bed ridden so Cars 4 Causes Team Members were allowed to visit them in their rooms. We read them the love quotes on their cards and told them we wanted them to know we were thinking of them on Valentine’s Day. Many of the residents knew Cars 4 Causes because they had car donation to us in the past. Others couldn’t stop talking about how the Valentines brought back so many memories of their younger days. Great Job Team Cars 4 Causes!!
As far as my husband and I have come in our lives – gotten our educations, own a home, have an adopted son – none of it has come by easily or cheaply. I paid off my student loans only 10 years ago at the age of 42, and remember times during my struggle to finish college and grad school when I was down to my last couple of pieces of bread and peanut butter, even though I was working two jobs. But I was too proud to ask my parents for money. There were several times when I recall an “angel” in the form of a friend had intervened just at the right moment and sent me a check or slipped me a $20 bill, getting me through.
One afternoon, after a play date, we heard that the mom of my son’s best friend had just gotten her car repossessed, and we felt sad and very anxious for her. A single parent of three young children, she depended on that car to get to her job as an ER nurse, to get her kids to school – essentially to live independently. No car meant no job, which meant possibly losing her apartment and ending up in a homeless shelter. We have always known her to be a good mother and responsible person to her commitments and we knew the loss of her car was not from carelessness or overindulgence.
Even though my car was just a couple of years old, my long commutes to Pasadena for my work were taking a toll on my back and I was looking to upgrade to something with more back support. I was not in a hurry to do this, wanting to get a little more life out of this current Ford, but it had been crossing my mind. That evening after dinner, I turned to my husband and said, “Is there any reason at all that we shouldn’t donate my car to charity for to benefit someone like our son’s best friend’s mom?” His face lit up and had that grin that tells me we were both on the same page. He said, “Absolutely no reason at all.” We were referred to a donate car program known as Cars 4 Causes because their Cars 4 Caring program has a reputation of making sure that car donations get into the hands of those most in need.
Sure, we could have sold that car and pocketed the $20K. But the truth is, we are doing fine. And given that we are older parents who most likely will not live long enough to be grandparents, we didn’t want to miss the experience of being the ones who could give what it takes to help someone get through. Giving a car to charity that will allow someone like our son’s best friend’s mom to not have to worry about a car payment for the next 7 years or so, well, that was exactly the kind of “angels” we wanted to be.
TEAM CARS 4 CAUSES® HELPS HABITAT FOR HUMANITY IN PIRU, CA.
M. Smith
February 1, 2011
Team Cars 4 Causes volunteered to assist Habitat for Humanity in the construction of a custom home in Piru, California this past weekend. It was a tremendous turn out on a sunny Saturday in southern California. Honorary Team Cars 4 Causes member, Peter Livingston of Livingston Construction, his son Ian and his lead foreman Rafa, led the way for Team Cars 4 Causes, teaching team members the basics of home construction and providing guidance for those difficult tasks.
Normally, building a house is a daunting task; first you have to buy the land, hire an architect and engineer, draw up the plans to your new home, convince the city to give you permits, find a bank willing to finance your dream home and select a contractor that can see your project through and stay within your budget. Millions of variables to stay on top of, any one of which can delay your home or blow your budget.
But as we found out here at Cars 4 Causes, a Habitat for Humanity house is different. Sure the steps are the same, no cheating the system there, but the house is built from an environment of friendly, good-spirited collaboration, and it makes all the difference in the world. The on-site vibe is fun and energetic. People volunteer their time to help build these houses and you can feel the affinity volunteers have for their fellow crew members as well as the entire process itself. There’s tolerance, patience and a helping hand at every turn. These volunteers aren’t expert tradesmen, so when someone makes a mistake or doesn’t know what to do, everyone helps out to make sure the job gets done and the people doing it feel good about their contribution.
Our job today was to seal, caulk and paint the eaves of the house and install the siding on the home’s exterior. Six of our team members worked on the siding and the remaining two accepted the task of caulking, sealing and painting the eaves. Habitat for Humanity Site Manager, John Kestler gave us all instructions on safety and our specific tasks and sent us on our way. There were a few challenging moments, a lot of questions for Peter, who guided us brilliantly through all the technical matters - lots of laughs. We had the privilege to work alongside the new owners who are required to contribute 500 hours of “sweat equity” in their new home. Having them there really personalized the experience for everyone.
I think it was Rudolf Steiner, speaking of biodynamic farming techniques, who pointed out that energy is an important ingredient that must be considered in the health of what we produce. Having experienced what goes into a Habitat for Humanity home, I can see that all the fun, laughs, love and positive energy that went into its construction is as important a raw material as the concrete and lumber that make up this house. I know now that this is the Habitat for Humanity difference.
The house we worked on belongs to Richard and Susan Vergana and their two daughters. The Vergana’s are members of the Maximillian Kolbe Church in Westlake Village who is sponsoring the construction of the house. Their new home is being built on a site that was once a 40-room hotel. The site was demolished and construction began in nearly a year ago, in March. Construction is expected to be completed in June of this year.
Because of the US recession and its impact on the construction industry, Habitat for Humanity has become the 5th largest construction company in America. However, their reliance upon construction industry contributions has been severely impacted and volunteers like Team Cars 4 Causes play a much larger role in the construction of a Habitat home than may have in the past.
All of us here at Cars 4 Causes are proud of our contribution to Habitat for Humanity and the Vergana family. We are excited for the completion of the Piru house this summer and are sure the Vergana family will be happy living in their new home.
