In 2022, we debuted a new slogan – we’ll drive you happy. We think it’s pretty neat – but it’s also a sentiment that would fall flat if we didn’t walk the walk (drive the drive?). CarvanaCares is the commitment to our shared values by supporting the diverse causes that are important to our team members, customers, and communities. We believe in treating people better by providing platforms and resources to give back and build meaningful, long-lasting connections in the communities where we live and work. Let’s look back on some of the amazing projects our CarvanaCares team supported this year:
Car Giveaway: Jimmie Johnson & American Legion
Sometimes, it’s easy to forget just how much access to transportation can change someone’s life. One of our car giveaways, featuring veteran Barry Morgan, served as a reminder. Barry’s caseworker at St. Vincent de Paul Cares, a local nonprofit, helped him enter the car giveaway – and the rest is history.
“I’m still shocked every time I look at it. I love going to the beach, to the ocean – I had family in from New Jersey and we went to St. Pete beach, then to Bush Gordan’s – I was able to enjoy my family and take ’em out and enjoy the state of Florida,” says Barry.
We partnered with NASCAR Legend Jimmie Johnson and The American Legion, replacing Barry’s recently broken-down truck with a 2019 electric blue Honda Civic.
“I’m just so thankful to everyone at Carvana for working with me and giving me this car; it’s been such a blessing.”
Read the full story.
Passion Projects Spotlight: Autism Awareness
CarvanaCares enables us to empower employees with funding and aid, helping them make an impact on the communities and initiatives they care about. This year, we helped employees interested in furthering autism awareness raise over $4,000 for Pathway to Work, a non-profit dedicated to providing meaningful experiences and preparation for employment preferences for adults with autism.
“The most meaningful and memorable part of this project was seeing how the Carvana community reacted. We received messages from people in different departments telling us how meaningful this fundraiser was to them… seeing us bring acceptance and awareness to autism showed them just how much Carvana cared about them and the community. It was rewarding to know I helped the neurodivergent community inside Carvana feel like they were appreciated too,” writes Kara, a Title & Registration Specialist at Carvana.
“Working with CarvanaCares and the Passion Project has greatly impacted my life. I had never thought of myself as a person who could design a t-shirt that her coworkers would wear… I am grateful for the chance Passion Projects gave me, and I take pride in knowing my design helped Pathways to Work afford a new vehicle,” she continues.
Read the full story.
Passion Projects Spotlight: Dining in the Dark
In one of our last CarvanaCares efforts of the year, we supported employees involved with the Foundation Fighting Blindness, an organization that has been dedicated to funding research and treatment for comparative retinal diseases for over 50 years. One of our employees, Engineering Team Lead Fai, is the Arizona Chapter President, and helps individuals recently diagnosed with retinal diseases understand their options.
While at Carvana, Fai connected with Cora, a Product Track Lead and volunteer at the Foundation Fighting Blindness. Realizing shared passion for the organization and its purpose, they’ve been good friends ever since. This year, Carvana participated in Dining in the Dark, an experience that helps sighted individuals understand some of the challenges a person with little or no vision has.
“It’s incredibly exciting to have Carvana participate and have my team members join in and relate, even in a small way,” says Cora. “I think it’s always helpful to understand where other people are coming from,” follows Fai.
Car Giveaway: PRIDE Edition
In late 2021, Carvana PRIDE, a community of LGBTQIA+ employees and allies, donated a vehicle to TAKE Birmingham. TAKE “offers services and support groups to LGBTQ individuals all around Birmingham,” said Lauren, a title and registration specialist at Carvana. “The main thing that they do is help transport members of the community from to doctor’s appointments, to housing, to go grocery shopping, and things like that. [They serve] people who don’t really have the means to get around.”
Carvana donated a 2015 Ford Transit 350 XL, a vehicle large enough to help the organization shuttle multiple individuals and carry large hauls of food and supplies to those in need.
“When it comes to public transportation, you’re exposed to all types of people who don’t understand your background, don’t understand who you are as an individual. But with us providing our own transportation, we can kind of ensure that it will be a safe environment and that our community will get to where they need to be at safely and return back to their homes safely,” says TAKE Founder and Executive Director Duncan-Boyd.
“At the end of the day, we are all human beings, no matter what our gender identity is.”
Read the full story.
Car Giveaway: Conexion Edition
Recently, CarvanaCares and Carvana Community Conexion partnered with non-profit Driving Single Parents to give a car to Stephanie, a single mother of two in San Antonio.
“Our mission is to build a community that educates people about – and highlights – the Latin heritage and culture at Carvana. It’s about creating a space for people to discover more about how they are, where they come from, and learning about people who are similar to them and come from different backgrounds,” says Amanda, a Project Manager and Conexion leader.
“We give away cars to single parents who are very deserving… we get applications all the time… and selected Stephanie’s because she’s so incredible and has done so much, not just for her children but also for the community,” explains Cindy, the Founder and CEO of Driving Single Parents.
For Stephanie, a community advocate, the car will do more than help her get around. “The reason I got an SUV is to help me and my mission of helping at-risk teenagers, at-risk youth, because I can fit six teenagers in my car – there are so many girls out there who don’t know their worth, and I really wish somebody would have been there for me,” she continues.
Read the full story.
Passion Projects Spotlight: PHX Creative Mornings
Creative Mornings is a breakfast lecture series that meets once a month, offering creatives across 225 cities and 67 countries a chance to connect, share their work, and get excited to do what matters to them.
Carvana Senior Advocate Brian took over the Phoenix Creative Mornings chapter in 2019 to prevent it from shutting down. They faced challenges – such as the loss of their videographer. Brian approached CarvanaCares with the idea of a fundraising initiative that would help take Creative Mornings’ recorded meetings to the next level. CarvanaCares loved the initiative, donating new cameras, tripods, microphones, and a video-recording system for the chapter.
“Carvana’s generosity to support what we are doing was unexpected. We went into thinking, let’s see how much help we can get and go from there. We were really surprised when they got everything we needed,” writes Brian. “It is a good reminder that Carvana really does care. Because of this passion project we have also added to the permanence of the Creative Community in the Phoenix Metro Area.”
Read the full story.
Car Giveaway: EmpowHER Edition
“What would you do if you were just 1% more courageous?”
That is the challenge Judith Martinez, founder of In Her Shoes, issues to females of all ages and backgrounds that she interacts with daily. Founded in 2014, In Her Shoes’ mission – in the words of Martinez – is to “catalyze courage for young girls and women everywhere to live and create their lives with courage.”
That mission – catalyzing courage – resonated strongly with Carvana Community EmpowHER, which is focused on creating an inclusive environment that helps women in the workplace build personal and professional connections. So in February, CarvanaCares and EmpowHER partnered to give a 2015 Toyota RAV4 to In Her Shoes. The organization will use the vehicle to conduct local outreach efforts and travel.
“There is no worse thing to have than to have someone say, ‘I wanted to go to that job interview, but I couldn’t get there.’ If you need a ride to get to college, we will get you there. That’s what we’re about. There’s no reason to do anything alone,” says Amber Sotomayor, a Summit Committee Chairwoman at In Her Shoes.
Read the full story.
We’re All in This Together: Mesa Hub
Back in 2021, Carvana Customer Advocates Le Quan and Branden found out that a colleague, Ram, walked to and from work every day – no matter the weather or hour. They wanted to change that.
So they did. Through a GoFundMe campaign and fundraising efforts, Le Quan and Branden raised thousands of dollars to help buy Ram his own vehicle.
“It was Christmas Eve, towards the end of the shift, our bosses called for basically a hub meeting and Le Quan shared that every year him and his wife look for people that they see are really trying to do their best to try and better themselves,” recalled Reynolds.
“[Le Quan] pulled out a key and said, ‘I got with everyone at the hub and we got you a car.’ When I saw everyone come together like that, I felt this is really the family I’m blessed to be part of. The car allowed me to have that freedom. If I want to go somewhere, I can now hop in the car and go somewhere. I am actually focusing on being able to drive the car out to see my daughter, as well as my parents.”
Read the full story.
What’s in Store for CarvanaCares in 2023?
Myles, a Document Administration Lead who organized a bowlathon to raise money for a local boy’s and girl’s club and helped a local middle school buy supplies, emphasized the importance of initiatives like CarvanaCares. “Being able to utilize the bowling event as a team bonding event, seeing people bring outside people in. Watching the people in my team laugh, seeing the mixture of people joining laughing… that was just amazing, and then being able to meet the students that they selected, most of which were low-income students – to know that these kids had somewhere to go, that was amazing,” he says.
He continues, “I’ve always loved giving back – during the holidays, me and some of my colleagues from school pitch in every year, pitching in and cooking a bunch of food for the homeless. I would love to continue doing things like this – it isn’t anything that requires a crazy budget, but it gives us an opportunity to partner with other companies, to help out our community, and it shows.”
Continuing to support initiatives with CarvanaCares is just what we plan on doing. Here’s to a joy-filled year past, and another one to come.
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