You might say a Burlington car dealer has gone to the dogs.
Summit Assistance Dogs in Anacortes was presented with a 2011 Toyota Prius Monday at Foothills Toyota Scion in Burlington, after winning it in the Toyota 100 Cars for Good initiative.
According to Foothills owner Pam Nelson, there were over 3,000 applications nationally, which were whittled down to 500 charities. Over the course of 100 days, five charities went head to head in a social media contest — the organization that brought in the most votes each day won a car.
“You rallied all your supporters and shared your story with the public on that day and the public rewarded you,” Nelson said. “I will also mention you’re the only charity in the state of Washington to receive one of these cars.”
In front of a crowd of Toyota officials, Summit staff, volunteers and clients and several canines, keys to the new vehicle were handed over to Summit founder Sue Meinzinger and development associate Erik Mann.
“We really went into this competition thinking that a small organization from Anacortes really wouldn’t have a chance going up against such organizations as the Habitat for Humanity, so you guys really pulled through,” Mann said.
“We drive at least 200 miles every week on the highways around Washington,” said Meinzinger. “This is just an incredible opportunity for us to save a lot of money. I just want to let you know what an opportunity this is and how many lives you’re going to change.”
Summit was also presented with a vehicle service agreement from Toyota Financial and Foothills donated an additional $5,000 to the nonprofit group. Whidbey Island Bank also contributed $2,500 to Summit, with the promise of a matching donation next year.
Summit provides mobility, hearing and professional therapy dogs for people living with disabilities, at no cost to the recipient. The group is looking to begin a new program called Serving Our Soldiers, which would provide therapy dogs to veterans suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
“There is a lot of passion behind the veterans program, as you can imagine with all the military in the area.” Meinzinger said. “The money will help us work on the application process and promotion, getting the word out to veterans.”
Meinzinger anticipates beginning to accept applications for the veterans program in January.
Michelle Munro of Seattle received her balance mobility dog, Hayden, in 2006.
“I know what they’ve done for me,” she said. “Anything that leads to them helping more people is great.”
Alex Stone, 25, has had his mobility dog, Fraser, for five years. He said having Fraser has allowed him to travel independently, something he never would have been able to do before.
“I know the benefit I’ve had from Fraser and knowing they’ll benefit someone else is awesome,” he said.
