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Neighbor News

Honda of Turnersville Spreads Holiday Cheer to Kids in Need

Dealership closes early to make the holidays brighter for underprivileged youth.

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Communications, Neighbor

ATCO, NEW JERSEY (December 26, 2019) – Youth from Archway Programs, a local nonprofit, filled the service bay at Honda of Turnersville on Wednesday, December 11th, 2019 as the South Jersey dealership hosted its seventh annual holiday party for nearly sixty kids from Archway’s HOPE and DISCOVER programs. This year, Archway extended the invite to youth from Legacy Treatment Services’ residential program. Staff and their families from Honda of Turnersville volunteered to host the highly anticipated event, which gives children the opportunity to take a break from the daily challenges they face and just be kids. In addition to coordinating vendors, caterers, balloons, photo booth, games, and music, generous volunteers from Honda of Turnersville made sure each child received presents this year. Prior to the event, children wrote down three wish list items on gift tags. Staff and families from Honda of Turnersville each took several tags and generously purchased each child all three presents for the kids to open at the holiday party.

Min Chin, General Manager at Honda of Turnersville, always goes above and beyond to make this a memorable event. As youth finished dinner, they were astounded to see the Phillie Phanatic enter the service bay. The expressions on the kids’ faces were priceless, and they could hardly believe that they got to meet the Phillie Phanatic himself. With help from the Phillie Phanatic, Santa arrived on a decked out firetruck escorted by volunteers from the Whitman Square Fire Company of Washington Township.

Santa arrived on a decked out firetruck courtesy of the Whitman Square Fire Company of Washington Township.
“Seeing the smiles on their faces is priceless, it’s the best gift possible. These kids face a lot of hardships, and this event gives them a chance to just be kids and forget about everything else,” said Min Chin, General Manager of Honda of Turnersville.
Mikayla, age 9, from Archway’s HOPE Program was very excited to see Santa

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Honda of Turnersville generously presented Archway Programs with a check in the amount of $1,000.00 for children and teens served in both HOPE and DISCOVER partial care youth programs.

“Archway Programs is incredibly grateful for its partnership with Min Chin and his team at Honda of Turnersville for their continued support over the past seven years. The fact that Honda of Turnersville shuts down its service bay early and employees volunteer their time to give back and help those in need, speaks volumes about Min and his employees and their commitment to making a positive impact in the lives of hundreds of children,” said George Richards, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer.

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Children were very thankful for the presents they received at the event. Pictured above is Semaj, age 12, from Archway’s DISCOVER Program.
Children in the HOPE (Help, Optimism, Preparation, Empowerment) and DISCOVER (Direction, Improvement, Structure, Creativity, Oversight, Vision, Encouragement, Reward) programs are between the ages of five and eighteen with behavior and/or emotional concerns that interfere with their daily living. Kids in both programs live at or below poverty line and often times their families or caretakers have limited resources for necessities such as shelter, food, clothing and transportation. Archway’s HOPE and DISCOVER programs have been in place since 1980 and serve children and teens throughout Gloucester and Camden counties. Both programs use a successful model to provide children with a safe, consistent, structured and caring environment as Archway Programs' staff discovers their individual strengths and the children overcome their deficits through coping and social skills.
Children were very thankful for the presents they received at the event. Pictured above is Quadiza, age 10, from Archway’s HOPE Program.

The holiday party originated when Ron Reid, Archway’s former HOPE Program Supervisor, reconnected with an old friend, previous Honda of Turnersville salesman, back in 2012. Honda of Turnersville first donated and brought volunteers to help serve food at the HOPE program’s annual Thanksgiving celebration. After finding out that not all of the kids in the program would be receiving Christmas gifts, Min Chin, Honda of Turnersville, General Manager, came up with the idea to have a holiday pizza party. Honda of Turnersville has grown this into a memorable event that kids in Archway Programs’ Partial Care Services HOPE and DISCOVER programs look forward to each year. To show Archway’s appreciation, Reid started his own tradition of preparing lunch for the Honda of Turnersville employees after each event in addition to the kids who write “Thank You” cards for a holiday celebration they will never forget.

For more information on Archway Programs, visit www.archwayprograms.org.

Media Contact:

Jillian Pustizzi

856.325.7369

Jillian.Pustizzi@archwayprograms.org

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About Penske Automotive Group

Penske Automotive Group, Inc., (NYSE:PAG) headquartered in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, is an international transportation services company that operates automotive and commercial truck dealerships principally in the United States, Canada, and Western Europe, and distributes commercial vehicles, diesel engines, gas engines, power systems and related parts and services principally in Australia and New Zealand. PAG employs more than 26,000 people worldwide and is a member of the Fortune 500 and Russell 2000, and is ranked among the World's Most Admired Companies by Fortune Magazine. Please visit https://www.penskeautomotive.com/ for more information.

About Archway Programs

Since 1965, Archway Programs has been meeting the individualized needs of thousands of families throughout the state of New Jersey. Archway Programs is a diverse, non-profit, human services organization which includes approved private schools for students with disabilities in addition to several model programs providing unmatched services. Built on a solid foundation of core values, providing safety, possessing compassion and promoting individuality, Archway Programs strives to improve the life of every individual served. Our goal is to ensure that each individual’s needs are met and customized services are provided and partnered with passionate, committed and talented professionals in a safe environment. Over 440 individuals are currently employed by Archway Programs and this dedicated and talented staff provides services to over 1,800 children and adults requiring individualized care. Please visit www.archwayprograms.org for more information.

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