Toyota 100 Cars for Good returning for 2012!

At the Chicago Auto Show today, Toyota announced the return of its “100 Cars for Good” program. For the second straight year, Toyota will award 100 vehicles over the course of 100 days to 100 U.S. nonprofit organizations, with winners selected through public voting on the Toyota Facebook page. Applications for the program will open on March 12, 2012 at http://www.facebook.com/toyota. Visit us at @ToyotaofWilmNC on Twitter or on Facebook @ http://www.facebook.com/toyotascionofwilmington for more information.

The announcement was made by Michael Rouse, vice president of philanthropy and community affairs for Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., who was accompanied by some of the nonprofits that received vehicles in last year’s 100 Cars for Good program.

“At Toyota, we appreciate what a big difference a new car can make for organizations working to improve lives and strengthen communities across the country, and we are thrilled to have this opportunity to lend a hand,” said Rouse. “Over the last 20 years, Toyota has contributed more than half a billion dollars to nonprofits throughout the U.S. 100 Cars for Good allows us to build on that commitment in important, new ways by making the public an integral part of these efforts and harnessing the power of social media to expand awareness and galvanize support for organizations that are having such a tremendous impact in neighborhoods nationwide.”

A 2011 winner of a new Toyota Sienna, the Chicago Zoological Society, also spoke at the announcement.

“We are very appreciative of this tremendous donation from Toyota,” said Stuart Strahl, Ph.D., president and CEO of the Chicago Zoological Society. “The new van has been invaluable in our efforts to bring our conservation and informal science education programs to under-resourced communities throughout Chicago and the suburbs. Our dedicated staff travels year round to these communities, inspiring families to gain an appreciation of nature and wildlife, not only globally, but also in their own backyards. We have also used the minivan to transport young students to the zoo and field locations as part of the Society’s award-winning Youth Volunteer Corps.”

In communities across the country, vehicles from the first year of 100 Cars for Good are making a significant difference. These include:

• Supporting the efforts of Canines for Service here in Wilmington, North Carolina to train and deliver service dogs to wounded veterans and those with special needs.
• Ensuring that a soup kitchen in Morristown, New Jersey can pick up food donations that used to be turned away due to a lack of transportation, allowing it to provide meals and food to even more people in need;
• Helping a program near Detroit provide horseback riding visits for kids with cancer.