By far, the best thing about being a Hyundai dealer is Hyundai Hope on Wheels. With Hyundai Hope on Wheels, we donate money to fund pediatric cancer research for every car we sell and Hyundai matches it. Hyundai and the Hyundai dealers are the single largest funders of pediatric cancer research in the United States. In fact, the US Government designates less than 3% of its national cancer research funds towards pediatrics. Without Hyundai, more kids would be dying. That’s a fact. In my book, the words kids and cancer shouldn’t go together.
Through Hyundai Hope On Wheels, we have donated a total of over $72 million to fund pediatric cancer research at institutions across the country, including Connecticut Children’s Medical Center in Hartford and Yale New Haven Hospital. Just this week, Jeff and I were lucky enough to help donate a $250,000 at Yale to an amazing researcher studying how to improve outcomes for kids with brain cancer. In total, over $1 million has been donated right here in Connecticut since 1998. That’s a lot of money!! So, to all our employees and customers, thank you!
September is pediatric cancer awareness month. I encourage you to get involved! Go to http://www.hyundaihopeonwheels.org to learn as much as you can! Key Hyundai has a car in each showroom (Key Hyundai in Manchester and Key Hyundai in Milford) with kid’s handprints on it. Those are actual handprints of kids with cancer from across the country. TELL EVERY CUSTOMER ABOUT IT!! The more awareness we have, the more kids we’ll save. Jeff, ,my brother and partner, went to the check ceremony at Yale New Haven and watched sick kids paint there hands and put them on a piece of paper in preparation to be next years cling on for the car handprints. It is incredibly moving. I’ve been to these ceremonies a dozen times and they never get any easier.
So, if you are ever looking for inspiration or looking for the “why” in what we do everyday, look no further than saving kid’s lives. Please, go to the website and get involved. It’s easy. As a mom of young kids, I can’t imagine what these kids and parents go through. We have to continue on with our mission to eradicate pediatric cancer.
