Wounded Warriors Family Support Helps Veterans with Ford Vehicle Purchases
When our servicemen and women return home from war, some have permanent physical and emotional injuries. Being disabled can add extra strain and hardship on a family. Something as simple as driving a car can be forever changed by the loss of a limb. To help families in need, the Wounded Warriors Family Support program hosts a yearly High Five Tour to raise money to help veterans. Recently, it made a stop in Northeast Ohio with the support of Montrose Ford and the NE Ohio Mustang Club.
Vehicles are purchased from local dealerships and then modified to meet the needs of the veteran. Two vehicles were on display; a 2015 Ford F-150 and a 2015 Ford Explorer. One was modified for rear-seat access with a wheelchair, while the F-150 was given steering wheel controls to make it easier to drive.
Both of those vehicles are signature vehicles. If you donate to the cause, you can sign or leave a message on the vehicles. These vehicles travel the country as part of the program.
The program is almost exclusively run by volunteers, many of which are from local Mustang clubs. In addition to having the signature vehicles on hand, the Mustang Club of Northeast Ohio put on a little car show in the parking lot as well.
While the qualifications for getting a purchased vehicle are looked at on a case-by-case basis, there is typically three pieces of criteria they look for.
- Did the veteran apply for and receive a VA vehicle assistance grant?
- Did the veteran receive a Purple Heart from a combat injury?
- Does the veteran have a family?
Since vehicles are purchased from dealerships, the VA vehicle assistance grant can help immensely in helping the program, since the program wouldn’t have to front all of the funds for the vehicle’s purchase and modification.
All money collected at the individual stops goes directly to help purchase vehicles. They are listed as a 4 star charity with Charity Navigator.
In addition to the car show and gathering, Montrose Ford also had a 2015 Roush Stage 3 Mustang convertible on display to ogle. According the Montrose’s John Allensworth, who also coordinated the event, their Ford dealership is in the top 3 Roush dealers in the country, and depending on the month they are number one. They also sell the most Raptors.
If you’re interested in learning more about the Wounded Warriors Family Support or the High Five Tour, be sure to check out their respective websites. If you’re a veteran who might be in need of their services, including vehicle purchase assistance, everything you need to know is on their website as well.
During a speech given by Allensworth, he hopes to be able to help two veterans in the area, and is expecting to raise $40,000 from his dealership’s campaign efforts. Montrose Ford went above and beyond just hosting the event, and turned it into a campaign to raise money beyond the scope of just the event.
Tour dates are also listed on the High Five Tour website.
What do you think? Let us know over in the forums!
