The Cars 4 Causes Blog.

Imagine putting your heart, soul and a hefty sum of money into something you love, only to have it unjustly ripped away from you without warning. That’s what happened to Barry.

He worked hard to raise the funds to purchase a 1941 Studebaker Champion Coupe, which he intended to fix up as a project car. On Wednesday evening, January 6^th 2010, according to witnesses, it was stolen right out of the driveway!

Barry posted an ad on Craigslist, http://ventura.craigslist.org/cto/1544223163.html, offering a $1000 reward to the person who leads to the recovery of the car.

“Help me find this Car !… This is a Lousy feeling… Imagine if you had worked very hard for something for a Long time, and some low life takes it away from you !… I feel like my child has been kidnapped…”

While Cars 4 Causes®is a national charity, we never forget our roots or our neighbors. We’re helping to spread the word about Barry’s car, and hoping that everyone’s efforts will get it returned to its rightful owner. We’re asking that everyone in the Ventura County area keep an eye out for Barry’s car, and contact Barry at 805-218-3658 if you see the car or have any information that could lead to its recovery. It’s a very unique car, and there are currently no cars like it in Ventura County, so if you see it, don’t hesitate to call.

It’s back-to-school time around the nation, and we’re happy to say that this year, Cars 4 Cause® was able to help two students on their way to college. The only thing standing between these two courageous and hard-working students was transportation.

They were brought to our attention by Echoes of Hope, an organization that helps emancipated foster youth. The charity appealed to us through the Cars 4 Causes® Car Give-Away Program. They were seeking help for two of the youth in their program who had been accepted into college but had no way of getting there.

Here are the students’ stories and why we were thrilled to be able to help:

Truck donation helps Sealy, a straight-A student, go to UCLA

Shealy was a straight-A student in high school (4.06 grade average!). She was in the foster care system for years, but instead of letting the hardships of her life defeat her, she became a track athlete and a model student. She was accepted into the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). But to go to school, she needed reliable transportation. The logistical reality was that without a car, she could not attend.

The kind donation of a pickup truck made the difference for her; she’s now on her way to classes at UCLA.

Car donation helps Darryl, a straight-A student, attend CSULA. Darryl stands beside his car, with his friend who drove him up to pick up the donated vehicle.

Darryl was also a straight-A high school student. His life up to now has also been hard. He was 7 years old when he entered foster care. He describes his early years as “random disorganized disaster.” Darryl made it through a sad and often terrifying youth, and now he is majoring in Sociology at California State University, Los Angeles. He wants to make a difference in the lives of others.

He’s on his way to classes in a donated car, a car that he’ll remember for life as the car that made a difference for him.

The Cars 4 Causes® story began with the desire to help fund the education of young people, and we’re especially happy to share this back-to-school story. It reminds us of what an impact a charitable donation can have on the lives it touches.

To see the variety of ways your vehicle donation can help, check out the Cars 4 Causes® list of approved charities - over 13,400 charities at last count, from international organizations to regional branches, to local community charities.

When car donors make their donations to Cars 4 Causes®, they choose which charities will benefit. We have more than 13,400 charities on our current list, and we’re adding new ones all the time.

We also have the Cars 4 Causes® Charity Partners Program. (Within this program, non-profit organizations designate Cars 4 Causes® as their car donation charity, and our experienced team then works directly with them to take care of their vehicle donations.)

We thought you’d like to hear about a few of our newest Charity Partners that focus their efforts on animals.

Ace of Hearts is a dog rescue foundation.

Ace of Hearts. This is a dog rescue foundation for animals in need. Its members rescue dogs from shelters, saving them from potentially being euthanized. Ace of Hearts is devoted to reducing pet over-population and finding these dogs happy, healthy homes.

Friends of Animals finds homes for abused cats and dogs

Friends of Animals Foundation. This charity rehabilitates and finds homes for abused, neglected and abandoned cats and dogs. They run a no-kill shelter that takes animals in, some in devastating conditions. The Friends of Animals Foundation is committed to finding responsible and loving adoptive families that will give these animals a second chance at a good life.

New England Equine Rescues. This organization is a network of volunteers who love horses. The New England Equine Rescues group facilitates the humane treatment and placement of horses, mainly focusing on crisis intervention.

See our list of charities on our Website – You’ll find many, many animal rescue organizations you can designate when you donate car through Cars 4 Causes®. We’d love to list them all here; they range from the Bat World Sanctuary in Texas to the Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee to the Maui Humane Society.

Your car donation span geography and charity to help those in need.

I wanted to participate in Blog Action Day for 2 reasons. The first is that I am a blogger, and working in the non-profit sector, I am curious to see how many of my fellow bloggers will participate and what the impact will be. The second reason is that I have been seeing more and more people in this wealthy area of Southern California that I live and work in falling into poverty, and have recently had conversations with people I know that disturbed me greatly. These recent experiences make me want to raise awareness about this topic.

Poverty is affecting all of us, whether we choose to acknowledge it or not. The easy thing is to give in to apathy, to continue in our daily lives and never even think about something so unseemly and ugly as poverty. It makes life so much easier when we can pass by that homeless person on the corner, and just not care. Why should we? We work, we pay taxes, and contribute to society. What do we care about some bum, or addict, or drop-out from society? My answer to these questions has a strange answer.

In this troubled economy, poverty wears a different mask. The face of a single mother trying to raise kids on a minimum wage job; a grandmother trying to survive on Social Security, a family whose sole provider is laid-off or injured, and can no longer work. A man who, after 30 years on the job finds out one day that his company has shipped their business overseas, and along with it, his retirement and medical benefits.  These are all the face of poverty in America today.

The most disturbing aspect of poverty I see in America is that for many people who are able to make a living and sustain themselves; the sad reality is that many of us are only a lost job, a storm-damaged home, a medical crisis, or a broken car away from total devastation. We think it cannot happen to us, but through no fault of our own, and a series of negative circumstances, we too could end up in poverty. Ask yourself; would there be somewhere for me to turn for help if it happened to me?

With the economic crisis we as a nation are facing, and several months to wait before the financial rescue is in place, families unable to pay their mortgages are being foreclosed upon at an increasing rate. Where will these families go for help? How will they house and feed their children? What about Seniors? Who is looking out for them?

These people on the brink need you and others like you who still have a heart and a mind to give. We know that volunteers make a difference, and so many organizations are working so hard behind the scenes to fight poverty, disease and ignorance. Silent heroes are making a real difference in the lives of hungry and hopeless people around the country.  Programs like Senior Nutrition, and Meals on Wheels exist in some cities, and there are local shelters and food banks in place throughout the U.S.  The problem is; most rescue missions, food banks and soup kitchens are donor funded, and rely on gifts to keep them open and volunteers to staff them.

I could quote a bunch of statistics about hunger and poverty, demographics and Census data.  What I really want to do is to prompt people to give more!  How do you make a nation grow a CONSCIENCE? I still haven’t figured out how. I can only hope that  my small contribution will make a difference to someone who reads it.

I feel my mission as an online representative of my charity is to interest people in possibilities. To prompt them to think, and to give.  I want people to realize that even the smallest gift will, when added to other small gifts, become someone’s life changing salvation.  I want to help people develop a giving spirit, knowing that their gift is making a difference where ever they give it.

So, I issue a challenge to you, after all, Blog Action Day, denotes taking some sort of action, doesn’t it? I challenge you to take action. If you are not currently doing anything to help with the problem of hunger and poverty in your city, start! Everyone has something to give. If you don’t have money, give of your time, talent, and other resources. Start a food drive in your office, do some hours in your local shelter or soup kitchen. Give to a Senior nutrition program. Hold a fund-raiser for a local charity that helps the homeless. If  you are a professional, give free consulting services to non-profits who can benefit from your particular expertise.

There are so many ways you can help. Find one that you can feel passionate about.  Whatever you give, you will make a difference!

If you are already giving, volunteering or donating money, give more! You can also donate car, boat, motorcycle, and gadget. Those of you who are doing well are needed in all areas to help impoverished people and those on the brink. Apathy is a killer, and nothing is just that. Do something, give more!

The Cars 4 Causes® Give-Away Program donated a 2002 Toyota Sienna Van to the Grossman Burn Foundation. The van was given by Executive Director Pat Jessup, and President Patti Kennedy from Cars 4 Causes® corporate offices in Ventura, CA. The Burn Foundation contacted Cars 4 Causes® earlier this year regarding the need for a vehicle to be used for a unique mission.

The Grossman Burn Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the California-based Grossman Burn Center, LLC, which specializes in plastic and reconstructive surgery treatment for burn victims.  The Foundation recently opened a facility in Kabul, Afghanistan. Their request was for a van or SUV to use as a transport for patients.

The newly opened hospital is under the direction of Dr. Peter Grossman, and Dr. Abdul Asat. Both doctors are accomplished Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons. The facility will provide care to patients in Afghanistan regardless of ability to pay, in a place where the health status of the general  populace, especially women, ranks among the very worst in the world. The van will be shipped to Kabul, where it will be used to provide transportation for burn victims. Grossman Burn Centers stated that this donation from the Cars 4 Causes® Give-Away Program is a vital part of the success of their mission in Kabul.