For the past 10 years, Frank Mercer has supported the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and the Make-A-Wish Foundation, two charities that hold a special place in his heart.
“I have a 14-year-old son that is a leukemia survivor,” said Mercer, president and chief executive of Tampa, Fla.-based CU Auto Lending Services.
Mercer is one of many auto finance executives whose charitable contributions often focus on organizations that have played a role in their own lives. Cancer research and underprivileged youth services are high on the list.
David Shevsky, commercial credit risk officer at GMAC LLC, also favors a cancer charity: the Coach Carr Cancer Fund at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center. Shevsky cited two main reasons for the preference. He explained that the organization’s mission is not just focused on cancer research. “This fund supports cancer patients and their families in getting treatment, understanding their disease, and dealing with the grief of those that succumb to the disease,” he said. “It is a unique program that has made a huge difference in the lives of cancer patients.”
Shevsky also knows Lloyd Carr personally, and “there is no other person who has such class and decency for others who struggle with cancer,” he said.
For Jonathon Levin, president of Chicago-based Turner Acceptance Corp., favorite charities include financial literacy groups AFSA Education Foundation and JumpStart Coalition, and Jewish education and vocational training organization ORT, among others.
“If something had a big impact on who you are and where you are today, you have to give back,” Levin said.
Children’s charities, too, are high on the list of favorite causes in the auto finance space. Jerry Bowen, an executive vice president at Wachovia Dealer Services, supports the YMCA. “In our market, they do tremendous work in the community, particularly with youth,” he said.
CitiFinancial Auto Senior Vice President Kim Pulliam supports Stajduhar Stables/Apache’s Angels, Easter Seals, and Canine Companions for Independence. “My daughter receives hippotherapy services at Stajduhar, and I am very supportive of organizations that help people with disabilities,” she said.
Some auto finance executives hold leadership positions at the charities they support. Case in point: Chuck Smith, senior vice president and director of lending at San Antonio Federal Credit Union, who is board president of the Children’s Association for Maximum Potential. “I first was exposed to this organization when I was a member of the United Way Program Review Committee,” he said. “I was so impressed with their mission and results, that I wanted to get more involved.”
The affinity for CAMP’s mission stemmed from Smith’s childhood. “When I was younger, I was in the Boy Scouts from the time I was 11 through a senior in high school,” he said. “I also worked as a camp as a counselor at Boy Scout Camp for two summers. I always enjoyed the experience of being able to enjoy camping and the outdoors. For this reason I felt compelled to become involved and help in any way I could, so that kids with physical and mental disabilities could enjoy the same things many of us took for granted.”
Other executives and their favorite charities:
Dan Berce, president and CEO of AmeriCredit Corp. — Cook Children’s Medical Center, Fort Worth, Texas
Ken Clark, a senior vice president at Bank of America Dealer Financial Services — American Cancer Society, Juvenile Diabetes
Andrew Fornarola, a senior vice president at M&T Bank — United Way
William Jensen, a senior vice president at Chase Auto Finance — Arizona Humane Society, United Way, ALS Foundation
—Marcie Belles
In my experience there is a huge difference in the number of lessees who actually buy their off lease vehicles when comparing dealers and independent lease companies/facilitators.
The more sophisticated lessees are fully aware that if they DO try to buy out their vehicle the lessor will probably try to charge them a lot more than market value. This leaves the door open for a site like this one. If the guy can buy a list of lessees and pitch them on his service during their lease he might generate some interest.