When you hear the name “Midas,” you likely think of brakes, mufflers, tires, oil changes and engine work. Starting this winter, however, the 58-year-old car-care company known for its “Midas Touch” and complete car care, also is gaining a reputation for community care.
Visit Midas’ Facebook page between now and Dec. 31, click on “Like,” and the company will donate funds for meals to local food banks as part of its North American “Drive Out Hunger” campaign.
The campaign gives franchisees and employees in more than 1,300 Midas shops in all 50 states and nine Canadian provinces the tools, promotional support, guidance and financial backing they need to partner with local food banks and run sustained fund- and food-collection drives supported by local advertising.
Midas, which currently is expanding its retail footprint by opening new stores throughout North America, launched the program on November 15.
The effort hits close to home for the Midwest-based Auto Service Experts (ASE) group, whose 36 Midas stores have long been on board with hunger relief. For the past year, those locations have donated a dollar to local food banks for every oil change, and their employees have been running food drives and coordinating box drops at food banks.
That passion for hunger relief was sparked by the childhood story of ASE co-owner Russ Gibson, a southern Missouri Ozarks native whose family benefitted from food subsidy programs during the 1950s. “Without the help that my family received back then, there is no question that we would not have made it,” said Gibson, whose Midas franchise organization is today the nation’s third largest. “I ate more powdered eggs, meat and beans from cans, and drank more powdered milk than I ever care to remember or admit, but the important part is that it was there and, as a result, our family made it.”
“It is with pride, empathy and compassion that I heartily support this cause and our efforts to help those struggling with life’s circumstance, in particular the kids, the veterans, and the elderly,” said Gibson.
“Midas has a long history of giving back, including a very effective campaign for car-seat safety that ran throughout the 1990s, as well as sustained efforts by motivated, community-focused franchisees,” said Midas Senior Marketing & Advertising Vice President Bob Crostarosa. “With the launch of ‘Drive Out Hunger,’ we are harnessing that energy and spirit, giving it new direction, and helping to make sure that Midas impacts the community in a very positive way.”
