Group cheers dealers' good deeds

Auto dealers are stepping up their community outreach during the COVID-19 pandemic, and an umbrella group was formed to promote their good deeds and help them find where their generosity is most needed.

The Do-Good Auto Coalition, organized by New York-based Constellation Agency, brings together dealers and others in the automotive industry with those seeking assistance in their communities.

"Most of the dealers I know are already heavily involved with their communities," said Constellation Agency CEO Diana Lee. "Amid the Covid-19 shutdown, they see greater needs and want to do more. So together we formed the Do-Good Auto Coalition."

Lee told Automotive News that the first dealers to get involved in the coalition were Shari Miller of Miller Buick-GMC and Bridget Beyer of Beyer Family Automotive Group, both in New Jersey. Miller and her team wrote letters to elderly people who might be lonely during the quarantine; Beyer delivered respirators to Morristown Medical Center.

In addition to publicizing good deeds, the coalition — through its website — acts as a broker of sorts between organizations that need volunteers and dealers who want to help.

So far, the coalition has 50 participants between dealers and community volunteers.

"We need as many people as we can get to help," said Lee, whose marketing and technology company focuses on the automotive industry.