The crew behind the Donate a Car Canada scenes

Donate a Car Canada has just a handful of staff. Our little crew comes from backgrounds in administration, charity work, and media relations. We have worked in business administration, care giving, spiritual care, home making, and janitorial roles.  Between us, we have half a dozen amazing kiddos. Over the years, we have lovingly nurtured all kinds of pets (dogs, cats, turtles, geckos, birds, fish) and any number of strays. Each of us reach into the important world of volunteering in our own ways.

Whether you’re talking with us in person (sharing stories of generosity, loss, or the frustration of a roadside breakdown), or connecting with us by email, we are a team who care very much about you and your personal connection to your gift.

You will get to know some of us by name; others will be working diligently in the background to ensure that your charity is set up to receive your gift, and that your gift is disbursed just so!

You’d think this would be a complicated process, right?

Donate a Car Canada is all about exceptional donor and charity service. The way we deliver that? Well, we like to say that it is actually as easy as 1-2-3!

1. Complete an online donation form (in less than 10 minutes).
2. Wait for your free tow (typically within 1 – 5 business days).
3. Receive a tax receipt from your charity of choice!

Neither you or your chosen charity will every pay for this service. And you did read that right: the charity is all up to you. We can serve any charity in Canada!

This kind of service starts at home.

Taking care of each other first

You know drill: put your own oxygen mask on before you tend the person beside you. That goes for us here at Donate a Car Canada, too.

In order to keep costs low, we all work from home. In fact, we have been a WFH company since the beginning. That’s over two decades of working scattered across the Alberta. This means taking care of each other needs to be done creatively.

We’ve had two of our key staff go down hard to illness this past year. When our crew mates fell sick, the rest of us felt a little helpless. How do you creatively tend your friend when she is out of reach?

This was really put to the test when our boss was under the weather this winter.

Wishing to support her, and hoping to make her life just a wee bit easier, the team collaborated. The best thing we could do to extend TLC? A care package! Delivered right to her door. ‘Sounds simple enough, right? Not exactly…

No good deed, or, Operation Drop-Off

Once co-workers Kirsten and Cory had tackled the building of the care package, Kirsten and our colleague, Marcia, took on delivery of the bundle of treats and nutritious snacks. The drop-off was enroute to another mini-road-trip destination. It only made sense to do a “quick” stop for our beloved employer!

Kirsten recalls,

“The day started out really well! We got on the road at a reasonable time. We even got to stop for food before heading to our drop-off. The boss warned us through text messages that the roads were terrible. She suggested that maybe we shouldn’t go, but we really wanted to. After all, this was a care package full of love! It needed to get to its people to do its job.

We agreed to just take it easy to get ourselves there and if the roads were bad, we’d turn back. But, honestly, the roads were great! Aside from one weirdly icy turn, the roads were pretty solid the whole way. We made it almost the entire way to our destination!

But, then we missed the last turn…

‘Simple mistake with big consequences because we decided to turn around in a “flat” little driveway that just had a “little” snow. Turns out the driveway was not flat. Nor was it lightly snow covered, Furthermore, it was not in the mood to let us get back on our journey quickly.

We ended up on glare ice and couldn’t get ourselves unstuck. I let our so-ill coworker know where we were and that we were just running a little behind. The next thing we know, our boss’s husband (who was also unwell) was pulling up to try to help us out. Such a sweetheart but he was in no condition to be helping push us out. After a few minutes, he went home to get a tow rope, brought back a hitch strap, and I hooked both vehicles up.

Pulling us out led to a near crash and the breaking of the hitch strap itself, but eventually we were all good! We then agreed that it was probably best to give the care package to the boss’s husband, right then and there, and let him go right back home to bed. Marcia and I made our way back to the main road so that we could head to our next stop. So, it was bonkers but it all worked out! Thankfully everyone was okay and the box ‘o’ love made it to its destination!”

Donate a Car Canada staff…post drop-off

The thing about things (literally!) slipping off the road (Oh, the best laid plans do go awry!)? Once they’ve started in that direction, they tend to continue in that direction.

With their journey of care package delivery partly behind them, you would think karma would smile kindly on the delivery driver? Nope! Marcia’s adventures were just beginning.

After safely navigating the next leg of their journey, Kirsten and Marcia arrived at their final destination. A warm hotel! Soft beds soon-to-be sunk into. No more icy patches or snow drifts or busted tow ropes. Or so they thought…

Marcia chimes in,

“I pull into the hotel parking lot and what do I see, you ask? My son’s team coach and team manager pushing a little ol’ Honda that is stuck. In the name of kindness and karma I get out of my car and ask if they need help….”

I mean, the Donate a Car Canada crew are really good-hearted folks!

I just need to interrupt Marcia for a second: this is a gal who just trekked a care package through ice and snow to give a little comfort to a co-worker. And now she’s pausing on her journey again! That’s how our Donate a Car Canada crew rolls in their off-hours!

But back to Marcia,

“Coach hollers, ‘Sure! We could use another hand pushing!’

So off I go to help push.

I am by the wheel of the car and as we start pushing I get a small ice bath from the slush and melt water spitting up at me! Coach decides to change the strategy and we all shift to the other side of the car.

We start pushing and feel the car make a move. At this precise moment I know things are gonna go sideways for me. And yes, yes they did. As the car began to shift, having the short wingspan that I do, it slips from my reach! And me? I lose my balance. I slide half under the car into a slush puddle that is up to my waist.  So there I am sitting in slush thinking, ‘Please don’t let this car roll forward onto me!’

A penguin swim was not in the plans!

The young woman who owns the car is hysterical and freaking out. Coach is trying to help me up. And I am sitting there laughing like a loon! I am unable to get my feet under me as it’s pure ice. Keep in mind the temp is in the minus twenties and the wind is freaking cold.

Once I leave the ice bath I am pretty much instantly frozen. I waddle my way into the hotel (sans glasses as they are ice covered and fogged so I can’t see). I proceed to laugh the entire way through the lobby and up the elevator. Most of those I cross think I have lost my marbles as I am still laughing like a loon.

To top it off? We were not successful in helping the young lady get her car out!”

Your donation is in resourceful and loving hands

Donating a car, truck, van, SUV, or motorcycle through our program is a personal process. The team on this side of your gift is going to keep things moving in a forward direction. No matter what! 9.99 out of 10 donations thrum along without a hitch. Working for Canadian charities for more than 10 years means we have some beautiful process in place. Our agents serve diligently and compassionately across Canada.

Quick, friendly efficiency is our work-a-day normal! But if icy patches and snow drifts and cars stuck in parking lots do get in the way? You can bet we will get it sorted!

The intention, character, and loving kindness that we exercise in our personal time is exactly what we invest in your donation process. Every gift counts. And the charity you are choosing counts, too! You have our guarantee that we will apply our practiced skills, resources, and ample humour to your vehicle donation.

Donate today and meet the team here at Donate a Car Canada!

You are also invited to contact and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter! From there, you’ll be able to keep up to date on our program as well as see posts that showcase our amazing donors and charities across the country!

The post Donate a Car Canada | Our Team appeared first on Donate A Car.

Auction-ready Smart Car donated with loving intention

Heather’s vehicle donation charity of choice was Bruce House. They’re a community-based organization providing housing, compassionate care and support for people living with HIV and AIDS in Ottawa. They believe that everyone has the right to live and die with dignity.

“I chose Bruce House because it is an organization close to my heart – for a few reasons.  I lost a family member to HIV/AIDS when I was in high school and I also first heard about Bruce House when I was in high school.  Our school chose Bruce House to be the focus of that year’s fundraising initiative.  It was especially meaningful, given my recent loss.  A short while later I start volunteering for Bruce House, in the hospice itself and also at fundraisers, information tables and during the Pride March.  

Since then I have met and lost more people to HIV/AIDS and the staff and volunteers at Bruce House are amazing, so truthfully there are many special someone’s in mind when it comes to Bruce House.  When I saw their name in the list of affiliated charities with Donate a Car I couldn’t have been more delighted; the organization is incredibly deserving.”

Don’t trade it — donate it!

Heather donated her ‘07 Smart Car from Gatineau, and our auction house in Ottawa was happy to step up and do the work of re-selling the car.

“We bought the SmartCar in 2007, it was our first car and there are so many special memories attached to it– I was very sad to see it leave us.  Purchasing a car for us was a bit of an angst-filled experience. My partner and I are concerned about our eco footprint and have never wanted to be over-reliant on a vehicle.  So the SmartCar struck a nice balance for us and we have continued not to be over-reliant on cars.  

We were able to purchase a car that bucked conventions in size, structure and fuel usage.  We had the car for 8 years and would have kept it if we lived in a warmer climate (the cold is hard on diesel engines).  The idea of selling the car was unappealing, but being able to donate it so that someone else can fix it and continue to use it – and the bonus that the funds go to an organization we care deeply about – meant a lot to both of us.”

Donation dollars add up to a smart gift for charity

$1593.25 in donations dollars for Bruce House was the happy result from the sale of Heather’s Earth-friendly SmartCar! We’re inspired by Heather’s lifestyle of mindfulness toward the planet and her practical goodness in walking alongside vulnerable friends.

Layered compassion. Reaching toward the felt needs of others, and awareness of our impact on our world. We can help with both!

To learn more about the work of Bruce House and other ways that you can support their work, visit them here.

To donate your own vehicle through our program, just fill in our online donation form, or give us a call at 1.877.250.490. It’s as simple as 1-2-3, and it’s quick and free, too!

The post Bruce House | A Big Gift in a Smart Package appeared first on Donate A Car.

Kids. They grip our hearts in a way no one or nothing else can. When we watch the news and see or hear anything that affects a child, there’s a part in all of us that squirms and churns. We want our future adults to be safe, to be raised well and to be productive and hopeful citizens. Some days it’s a little more challenging than others to impart life skills they can use for their lifetime!

We have many organizations focused on the health and welfare of our wee ones, from hospitals to wish granters, to the YMCA, to any help lines, to support for battered women or pregnant teens. Human lives are to be treasured and each of us can make a difference whether it’s in donating a vehicle to raise funds for one of these causes, or whether it’s the attitude and values we instill in our children.

A few simple steps each of us can take towards ensuring little lives become functional and emotionally sound adults can include:

Affirming positive experiences. When a kid does something well, tell him/her. When there’s a learning opportunity, use it as such instead of focusing on what’s not right. Putting a child on a pedestal isn’t healthy either. There’s a fine balance between encouragement and entitlement! One thing though, that children definitely respond to, is when they know you think they’ve done a good job, they want to do more of that. Even as adults we want to know when we’ve done good, right?!

Demonstrate kindness. Let them observe you being kind in a line up, like letting someone go ahead of you, or buying the car behind you their beverage at the drive through. It may seem simple enough, but the more you example those behaviours to them, the better chance they have at succeeding at being a thoughtful and caring adult. Don’t be a, “Do as I say, not as I do,” person!

Think about your actions and words and ask yourself if what you’re doing is something you’d like those young’uns in your life to be or do. You don’t need to be a parent to think this way. We all influence someone younger than us, whether we want to acknowledge it or not.

Ask questions. “What makes you think that?” “Tell me your thought process.” “Help me understand why you did it that way.” Allow their learning and growth to build on their own curiosity and mistakes.

Speaking of mistakes, allow them to make some! Our overprotective natures and our culture don’t want anything bad to happen, but sometimes it’s the only way. Kind of like the hands on the stove example we often use, learning experiences need to happen.

I’m not a parenting guru by any stretch, but when I think of how I responded to my ‘elders’ when I was a kid, I know what worked and what didn’t! Being a bully adult or a pushy dictator isn’t how we influence children to be their best, that much I know to be true! And as we often hear, these kids are our future…

Donate A Car Canada is so grateful however, when kids do need support and help (whatever the reason), that we have so many great causes and charities to support that truly do make a difference. A few years down the road it’s not just the child’s life that has benefitted, but an entire community and nation. Your dollars do matter. Every one of them.

The post Parenting: Raising Positive Kids in a Negative World appeared first on Donate A Car.