Recycled Rides gives back to Isaac victims

Jan. 1, 2020
  For six families, they now have something to help them get back on track – a refurbished vehicle donated through Recycled Rides.

When Hurricane Isaac struck earlier this year, many people in the New Orleans area lost all they had.

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But for six families, they now have something to help them get back on track – a refurbished vehicle donated through Recycled Rides. The annual event presented the six vehicles to the families, many of which lost their vehicles in the hurricane, Thursday afternoon at ASRW.

The Easley family is one example. The family lost their mobile home, horse barn and one of their horse trailers to Hurricane Isaac. They are on a limited income, with Gloria Easley, who is permanently disabled, supplementing the household income by providing therapeutic riding sessions for those with special needs.

It’s families like this, or Oscar and Anamae Jiles, a retired couple who also lost their vehicles to Hurricane Isaac that this program is designed to help.

This isn’t the first time NABC has helped families on the Gulf Coast. After Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, NABC’s fundraising arm, the Collision Industry Foundation, raised and delivered assistance to local shops in need of household goods, clothing and technician tools.

“We came and we tried to fix lives,” says Liz Stein, Assured Performance Network executive director. “It’s 2012, and we’re back.”

Recycled Rides, according to the NABC, is a national initiative that refurbishes donated vehicles and provides them to families in need and service organizations dedicated to assisting others. Body shops donate their labor, and insurers, paint companies, parts vendors and rental car companies contribute as well.

“At its most basic, the goal is to help people help themselves,” Chuck Sulkala, NABC executive director, said in a release about the event. “And all of the industry segments commit to playing a part in seeing that happen. Most that participate find it a life-changing experience.”

Four local shops donated their labor to refurbish the vehicles presented at ASRW: Car Craft Collision Centers, Champ’s Collision Centers, Collision Xperts and Fradella’s Collision Center.

Insurance companies contributing vehicles to be worked on were Allstate, Esurance, GEICO, Progressive and State Farm. Enterprise Rent-A-Car will donate a vehicle as well.

There are many ways to get involved with the program, including putting one together in your community. Also, Michael Quinn, Recycled Rides co-chairman, told those watching the presentation of the Votech Initiative, which helps schools refurbish vehicles for families.

“Charity is a learned behavior,” he says. 

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