Posts tagged Buy Happy Giving Program
Bash For Nash 5 | February 9th 2013
Feb 14th
Bash for Nash is an annual event that was initiated when Tom and Angela Wicka discovered that their son, Nash, was a victim of DMD, Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. DMD is a muscle degenerating disease that affects 1 in every 3,500 boys born. Life expectancy for those with the affliction is around 20 years. Tom and Angela have fought back over the past 9 years by creating The Nash Avery foundation. The foundation has spent 11 million dollars to help slow the growth of the disease and the organization has raised $3.6 million during their last four Bash events. More >
Morrie’s Partners with Make-A-Wish of Minnesota to Grant Matthew’s Car Restoration Wish
Jan 15th
At Morrie’s we actively look for opportunities to give back, but there are few instances where we can combine our love of cars, combined skills, expertise and generous staff to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy. When such an opportunity knocks on our door, we have to jump on it, and that is exactly what we did when Make-A-Wish of Minnesota told us about Matthew, who wished to have his 1968 Dodge Charger restored.
Rewind about a year and a half. Matthew, a 16 year old from northern Minnesota, is fighting cancer. After connecting with Make-A-Wish of Minnesota he wishes for his car to be restored, but his wish cannot be fulfilled until he is 16. As time passes he wonders if his wish will be granted. It was towards the end of this waiting period that we partnered with Make-A-Wish and expressed interest in employing our automotive passion to make a positive impact. As luck would have it, the timing was perfect and we set the ball in motion to restore Matthew’s Charger.
Not knowing what shape the car was in, we hitched up our trailer and made the three-hour trip north on Saturday, January 12. To Matthew, this was just another Saturday. Little did he know that we would be surprising him with the granting of his wish. Just a mile from his house, we connected Make-A-Wish volunteers and made the short drive to his house. Upon pulling into his family’s driveway, it did not take long to take notice of the bright green pickup, trailer and group of us walking towards the house and as if on cue, Matthew was the first out the door. He knew something was up and without hesitation we informed him that we would be granting his wish.
Matthew immediately led us to the Charger and we quickly discovered that it was in much better shape than expected. Spending most of its life in California surely has certainly been good to the car. After a few attempts to load the car, including everyone on hand, we were finally victorious in getting the car on the trailer. We secured it on the trailer, then quickly escaped the cold and celebrated with cupcakes and coffee. Matthew’s family was quite hospitable and in true northern Minnesota fashion, I’m pretty sure they would have invited us for a Sauna if we didn’t have a three-hour drive ahead of us.
Matthew’s Charger now sits at our Minnetonka Ford location where it will undergo a mechanical evaluation before heading to our body shop for bodywork followed by paint and upholstery. We will work closely with Matthew to ensure that the car it built to his specifications. The combined efforts and support form our employees, partners and friends will contribute to the restorations completion. We plan to document the process along the way on our blog so be sure to check back often.
We are truly proud to be able to make Matthew’s wish come true!
UPDATE #1: http://blog.morries.com/2013/01/matthews-1968-charger-restoration-update-1-pulling-the-engine/
90 Days of Giving with Morrie’s CV Mazda
Dec 13th
Tis’ the season to give thanks for what we have. We all love the opportunity to pay it forward. It just feels good. Morrie’s Chippewa Valley Mazda we has partnered with Gordy’s County Market to bring you 90 Days of Giving.
Every month for the next 90 days Morrie’s will give one car away along with $500.00 worth of gas or groceries. That’s 3 cars and $1500 worth of gas in 90 days! The Metropolis Resort and Waterpark also jumped on board and put together a great package to pair up with each car give away.
There will be three give-a-ways, happening on December 22nd, January 31st, and February 20th. If you know someone in need this holiday season, nominate them for the cause. All you have to do is submit the name of the person or non-profit organization that you think deserves the car. E-mail us and tell us who you nominated and why at 90daysofgiving@morries.com. This is one opportunity to really help a family in need. Do something great, help out a friend and give back this season with 90 Days of Giving from Morrie’s. We want to thank The Metropolis Resort and our friends at Gordy’s County Market for their contributions. For more information and official rules click here.
Hyundai Hope on Wheels 2012
Oct 2nd
This month is Childhood Cancer Awareness month for Hyundai Hope on Wheels. Hyundai Hope on Wheels is the united effort of Hyundai America and its more than 800 dealers across the U.S. to help children fight cancer. Since its inception in 1998, this organization has donated more than $57 million to pediatric cancer research institutions nationwide.
Every September Hyundai dealerships in Minnesota donate funds to support children’s cancer research. This year local dealerships raised $250,000 that was later donated to the U of M Amplatz Center, which specializes in pediatric medicine. This donation was presented to the Center during a ceremony which also celebrated the lives of children by capturing their colorful handprints, which will later be applied to a actual vehicle for display.
Morrie’s was proud to be able to help raise awareness about childhood cancer and celebrate the lives of these brave children.
2012 Perspectives of Hope Gala
Oct 1st
On Friday we had the pleasure of attending the 2012 Perspectives of Hope Gala. Throughout the past 10 years we have had on ongoing relationship with the Perspectives Agency and we look forward to a continued partnership.
Perspectives is an award-winning multi-program human services agency. They provide resources to hundreds of families and children and aim to break dysfunctional family cycles. These resources include education, career training, family counseling, and supportive housing. The Perspectives program helps to “strengthen families, restore dignity, and create hope.”
It was a beautiful event consisting of a silent and live auction, dinner, and even live entertainment from the children. The night began with a social hour where guests mingled, scanned and bid on the silent auction items, and enjoyed the harmonious sound of the harp player. Then guests filled the dining room for a gourmet meal. During dinner we received a warm welcome and introduction from David McNally, a longstanding Perspectives board member. Following dinner and the wonderful dessert, the live auction began. The excitement in the room escalated as the bidding was underway. One of the younger guests even got the chance to put her bid in. The silent and live auctions were both a great success in helping to raise money for Perspectives.
Linda Domholt of Perspectives said after the event, “A sincere thank you to our 15 corporate and individual sponsors, as well as the 240 people who attended the 2012 Perspectives of Hope Gala. It was once again a grand success as $166,000 was raised for Perspectives. This revenue will continue to support award winning programs that break the cycle of addiction, poverty and violence to hundreds of families each year.”
We look forward to our continued sponsorship with Perspectives and we were proud to be a part of such a beautiful and successful event.
Morrie’s Partners with Make-A-Wish Minnesota!
Aug 1st
We are pleased to announce that through our Buy Happy Giving Program we have partnered with Make-A-Wish® Minnesota. During the month of August we will be matching online donations to Make-A-Wish Minnesota up to $5,000. The goal of this partnership is to make a difference in a child’s life within our local community.
Make-A-Wish Minnesota grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy. Make-A-Wish Minnesota has granted more than 3,800 wishes for Minnesota children.
The Morrie’s Automotive Group is grateful to be able to support the local community that we live and do business in. To help develop these efforts we established the Buy Happy Giving Program in 2011. Through this program we seek out opportunities to give back to the local community by working with great local organizations.
We sincerely hope you will take this opportunity to support Make-A-Wish Minnesota and help to make a difference in a child’s life within our community.
To donate or learn more visit the Make-A-Wish Minnesota website.
Morrie’s Automotive Group Partners with the Herb Brooks Foundation
Jun 26th
The Morrie’s Automotive Group is continuing to develop our Buy Happy Giving program which was established in 2011. For the 2012-2013 year Morrie’s has partnered with the Herb Brook’s Foundation to help promote and advocate for a positive hockey experience among youth members. We have a variety of different volunteer opportunities that we are looking forward to engaging in with the foundation this year and are happy to be working with such a great community organization.
Morrie’s Partners with the Minnesota Zoo
Jun 8th
Morrie’s Automotive Group has been involved in our local communities since Morrie Wagener opened his first store in Wayzata, MN over 50 years ago. Giving back to the community has always been a core value for Morrie’s, and we are grateful to be able to support the local communities that we live and do business in, leading us to establish our Buy Happy Giving program in 2011.
We are pleased to announce that last month we donated a Mazda CX-5 to the Minnesota Zoo. Since 1978 the Minnesota Zoo has been connecting people, animals, and the natural world through cutting edge exhibits and education programs.
