LARGO - Autoway Toyota presented a new Toyota Sienna to SPCA Tampa Bay on Nov. 10 as part of the Toyota 100 Cars for Good program.
Supporting the nonprofit organization’s mission to be community leaders in animal advocacy, the new vehicle will be used to transport sick and injured stray animals requiring emergency medical care. The Sienna also will be deployed to assist in cruelty investigations of distressed animals.
The Toyota 100 Cars for Good program has awarded 100 vehicles over the course of 100 days to 100 deserving nonprofit organizations nationwide based on votes from the public. The program was launched as a Facebook-enabled philanthropy initiative, which engaged supporters of these charities through its Facebook application. Each day for 100 days, five organizations were profiled on the Facebook page and the one with the most votes at the end of the day was awarded a car. The 400 runners-up each received $1,000.
“We are huge animal supporters at Autoway Toyota, so we were absolutely thrilled that the SPCA Tampa Bay was chosen to receive this Toyota Sienna,” said David Bertoncini, sales manager at Autoway Toyota, in a press release. “It’s not a rare sight to see our customers car shopping with man’s best friend at their side, which we welcome and enjoy. We want to do everything we can to help the SPCA Tampa Bay give animals a brighter life than they’ve had. We are honored to be able to take part in this day.”
In addition to delivering the Sienna to the SPCA Tampa Bay, Autoway Toyota is filling the van with items from the organization’s wish list, such as pet food, toys and other supplies. On the day of the event, the community is invited to bring their own furry friends and supply donations to the dealership for the SPCA Tampa Bay, which also will have cats and dogs available for adoption.
“We are incredibly thankful for Toyota’s donation and for the support of Pinellas County residents,” said Martha Boden, CEO, SPCA Tampa Bay. “In the last five years we’ve responded to more than 10,000 animal emergency assistance calls, driving over 500,000 miles in Pinellas County with our service vehicles. Winning a new Toyota enables our team to use reliable transportation as we help save lives and return injured animals to their worried owners.
