Carl’s Collision Center of Fall River, Mass., announced a unique fundraising effort to benefit the Katie Brown Educational Program (KBEP). KBEP, which was founded in 2001, provides an educational curricula to middle and high school students, both in public and private schools and alternative settings, dedicated to the recognition and prevention of relationship violence. Carl Garcia, owner of Carl’s Collision, serves a member of the Board of Directors for KBEP.
According to Garcia, the initiative is designed to create a cooperative effort between numerous industries and individuals to come together for a common cause. The goal is to get all segments of the automotive manufacturing and repair market together with others from the fields of sports, entertainment, politics and business to combine their efforts and restore a 1965 Mustang. The staff and volunteers of Katie Brown would then be responsible for conducting a raffle of the vehicle to improve the organizations financial situation.
“Like all worthy non-profits, the KBEP has suffered from a reduction in its operational funds over the last several years, and that affects their ability to reach these youngsters and educate them about relationships and how to deal with them,” said Garcia. “I thought it would be a great idea to get our industry involved in the initial steps of providing funds and parts for the restoration, but then have the actual restoration done by celebrities, politicians and influential business men and woman to add value to the vehicle and help increase the number of tickets that would be sold.”
“KBEP is able to provide our programming to area schools in large part because of the support of community members who are invested in preventing youth relationship violence,” said Ruth Zakarin, KBEP executive director. “Carl Garcia has been a long-term friend of KBEP, and we truly appreciate his efforts on our behalf. In today’s economy, many schools do not have the resources to pay for programming, so the money raised through this effort will ensure that more schools have access to our program, allowing their students to receive this vital information.”
Beginning this week, Garcia will be mailing a letter to numerous industry stakeholders seeking support for the project. These will include individuals who represent manufacturing and parts, insurance, paint, aftermarket, collision repair, associations, vendors and many others. This letter will seek either a financial or product contribution to begin the process of obtaining the necessary parts to restore the vehicle.
The second stage will then involve obtaining the participation of “65” select individuals, who would rebuild the Mustang.
A poster with spaces for 65 photos will be created, and after one of these select individuals actually takes part in an aspect of the restoration, their picture will be added to the poster.
More information:
If you would like to get involved in this project, contact Carl’s Collision at (508) 675-5422.
The Katie Brown Educational Program was founded in 2001 in response to the brutal murder of Katherine “Katie” Brown, a 20-year-old woman from Barrington, Rhode Island, by the young man she had dated since high school. To memorialize and honor Katie’s life, KBEP has developed an innovative and interactive curriculum that is delivered to students in public, private and parochial schools throughout Southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island. While KBEP teaches youth the skills they need to prevent violence in all of their relationships, particular focus is given to the issues of dating violence and bullying. Since 2001, KBEP has reached over 42,000 elementary, middle and high school students with their curriculum.
