LIMA — Allen County Veterans Council President Steve Montgomery admitted he was quite surprised when he learned that Allan Nott Honda/Toyota had a $13,200 check waiting for his group.
The car dealership presented Montgomery and representatives from other local veteran organizations with the check Wednesday at its location on Elida Road. The donation was a result of the dealership’s annual spring sale.
“When I first heard they were doing this, I had no expectation at all,” Montgomery said. “I thought maybe we would be getting a few hundred, maybe a thousand dollars. I about dropped my teeth when I found out how much it was.”
The dealership has a theme for its spring sale each year held around Memorial Day. Allan Nott marketing manager David Henderson said the dealership was looking for something different this year.
“We wanted to do something different, something that would hit close to home,” Henderson said. “We have a few veterans working here, and we thought this would be a great way to help.”
Henderson said that during the sale, held over the entire month of May, the dealership promised to give $50 for every car sold to the Veterans Council. Allan Nott sold 264 cars total for the month for the total donation amount. That number was about 6 percent above the dealership’s average month.
“Both the sales people and the customers really bought into it,” Henderson said. “It was a good effort, and we were able to make a difference.”
Montgomery said a portion of the money will be used to purchase a display case for various organizations to display memorabilia at its new location on Elm Street. Montgomery said several organizations moved to the new location after Memorial Hall was closed and currently do not have room for several items due to less space.
“We will also donate a good portion to the Veterans Food Pantry because they are always in need,” Montgomery said. “The DAV offers used power chairs to area veterans until they get their new chair from the Veterans Administration, so we will use some of that to help with items like batteries or wheels. There will be money go to 11 organizations that help with veterans in need.”
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