William Penn Life, 1999 (34. évfolyam, 2-12. szám)
1999-07-01 / 7. szám
Volunteers of America Turnin_ lemons into Gold STILL HAVE THAT OLD CHEVY sitting in your driveway? Looking for a way to get rid of it without the hassles involved in trying to sell it? Then Volunteers of America has the answ'er: donate it. Volunteers of America is one of the nation's largest and most comprehensive nonprofit human services organizations. From rural America to inner-city neighborhoods, its professional staff and volunteers operate 160 different programs that deal with today's most pressing social needs. Every year more than 1.4 million people feel the helping hand of Volunteers of America, including abused and neglected children, youth at risk, the elderly, the disabled, the homeless, families in crisis and exoffenders returning to society. Founded in 1896, Volunteers of America is also the nation's largest non-profit provider of affordable housing for low-income families and the elderly, and provides skilled long-term nursing care and other health services. To help fund its many services, a number of the organization's local affiliates offer a vehicle donation program. People with unneeded vehicles of any kind can donate that vehicle to the affiliate. The affiliate then usually sells or salvages the vehicle and uses the money for its other programs. The program has three main advantages for the donor: • You can quickly and easily dispose of a vehicle that is no longer needed. • You can (usually) claim a tax deduction of the fair market value when itemizing on your return. • You will be directly helping those in need. In addition to old cars, affiliates involved in the program will also accept donated trucks. Many will accept RV's, boats and motorcycles. Some even accept old airplanes and 18 wheelers. About the only restriction is that the vehicle must have some value. Vehicles in need of minor repairs or body work are okay. But even if the vehicle doesn't run, it may be accepted if it has a number of usable parts. Most affiliates auction the vehicles to raise funds. Sometimes, the vehicle is used as transportation for the other service programs the affiliate provides the community. A few affiliates operate job training programs in which participants work on the vehicle to learn valuable job skills. Even if they're handed lemons, Volunteers of America will find a way to turn them into gold for the people they serve. |WPL| Charity Links For more information about Volunteers of America, its programs and its vehicle donation program, contact your local VOA chapter or contact: ■ ■ - ......... How do you or your branch make an impact in your community? We know many of i I our members and branches are involved in charitable work in their hometowns, making a real impact on people's lives. Share your stories with us. Maybe what you do for your neighbors could be helpful to other members and branches looking for ways to help their communities. Send your charitable ideas to: Charitable Ideas, William Penn Life, 709 Brighton Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15233. I .... ....J 3 Volunteers of America National Office I 10 South Union Street Alexandria, VA 22314-3324 Phone: 1-800-899-0089 Fax: (703) 684-1972 www.voa.org 6 William Penn Lilt, July 1999
