Haddad Subaru Donates $8,000 to Berkshire Humane Society
as Part of Love Promise Initiative

Pittsfield, MA - July 2, 2024 - Haddad Subaru is thrilled to announce its continued support for the Berkshire Humane Society with an $8,000 donation, presented on June 28th. This generous contribution is part of Subaru's nationwide Love Promise initiative and marks the eighth year of partnership between Haddad Subaru and the Berkshire Humane Society.

The funds donated will support various essential services provided by the Berkshire Humane Society, including food pantries, animal clinics, and efforts to find forever homes for every pet in the shelter. Over the past eight years, this partnership has raised over $131,000, significantly impacting the local community and aiding animals and families in need.

John Perrault, President of the Berkshire Humane Society, expressed his gratitude, stating, "The support we've received from Haddad Subaru over the years has made an incredible impact. The $131,000 raised has helped us provide vital services to the community and ensure that animals and families receive the care they need."

The Love Promise initiative involves a portion of the proceeds from every vehicle sale between November and January and from each service ticket processed at Haddad Subaru. Chris Kramek, Vice President of Haddad Subaru, emphasized the importance of the donation, saying, "This contribution goes far beyond monetary value. We hope our continued partnership assures that families facing hard times can access to basic veterinary care, food from the pantry, and that every shelter pet in Berkshire County finds a loving forever home."

The Berkshire Humane Society is a non-profit organization committed to the welfare of animals and the people who care for them. Through its food pantries, animal clinics, and adoption services, the society strives to ensure every pet in Berkshire County finds a loving home.

Haddad Subaru brings music, food and joy to "Feed our Neighbors" Event

When the call was heard that our very own Christian Center food program in the Berkshires needed the community's help to raise money, awareness, and support for the pantry, they reached out to Subaru with an unusual request. In past months, Subaru had hosted a highly successful coat drive at the Christian Center, where many Subaru team members volunteered. One of these dedicated volunteers was Marketing Director Beth Maturevich, who Pat from the Christian Center knew was also from the popular band Whiskey City. Pat, brimming with enthusiasm, didn't hesitate to ask if Whiskey City could donate their time and talents to support the event. Beth agreed wholeheartedly, and when she mentioned this to Chris Kramek, General Manager and Vice President of Haddad Subaru, he immediately saw an opportunity to further help. Chris didn't just offer several employees to volunteer; he also arranged for cornhole games and giveaways to enhance the appeal of the already fantastic event. Plus, Haddad Subaru generously donated $500. Chris immediately suggested, "Let's start a food drive and fill a Subie full of non-perishable items." He rallied his team, and soon they had a Subaru hatchback filled with canned goods, ready for the event aptly named "Feed Our Neighbors."

The event was an afternoon filled with delectable delights, lively music, and a spirit of community, all coming together to support a noble cause. Beth, reflecting on the experience, shared, "I have said it before, and I will say it again: working with Chris Kramek and for Haddad Subaru has been such an honor due to the amount of generosity he and his team provide for our community. Being asked by someone in need to use my band to help out is one thing…but bringing it to Chris's attention and always having him be the first one to say, 'What else can we do? How else can we help?' is extraordinary. He and the Subaru team always go above and beyond every single time." The event's success was not only measured in donations and participation but also in the heartfelt connections made. Chef Chris Bonnivier remarked, "This event truly embodies the spirit of community and compassion. It's heartening to witness so many local businesses, individuals, the band, and Haddad Subaru stepping up together to support our neighbors in need. Together, we can make a meaningful difference in the lives of those facing food insecurity."

Through the Subaru Love Promise, Haddad Subaru demonstrated that their commitment to community goes beyond business-it's about creating lasting impacts and fostering a spirit of togetherness. The "Feed Our Neighbors" event was a testament to what can be achieved when we all come together with open hearts and a shared purpose.

Proud To Support Youth Ski & Ride at Reid Middle School

In January 2023, Haddad Subaru provided sponsorship to help enrich the lives of six amazing young ladies from Reid Middle School. Through a seven week learn-to-ski program, offered by Bousquet Mountain, these six ladies were offered ski lessons, necessary equipment, and dinner each week. With hopes of creating a rewarding, empowering, socially supportive, bonding experience where everyone could just simply feel like they belonged. Financially, the young women would not have been able to participate in this sport. Having an opportunity to have the equipment and lessons provided experiences that have left a lasting impression on each of these students.

The team at Haddad Subaru was so moved when they received thank you letters from each one of the participants. They were heartfelt and described how this program made a difference in their lives. Brooke kindly said, "I learned that it's ok to be scared and to face your fears." Isabella mentioned "I became more confident in myself and was able to overcome my fears." Miriah shared with us that "Skiing definitely made me more confident, and I was proud of myself and so was my grandpa."

GM Chris Kramek, whose kids ski, had one of their friends' mothers (Kristin) bring up the fact that at the school she teaches at, she did not see anyone getting involved in winter sports. That sparked Chris and Kristin to understand the great need to find some deserving kids that would benefit from a ski scholarship and to reach out to Cindy, the Ski Instruction Director at Bousquet Mountain. It wasn't easy choosing just six but we based the criteria on their attendance, class contributions and attention in class. There is a higher percentage of lower income households and kids at this middle school. That didn't particularly matter to our choices per say, we really were striving to find kids that just wanted the opportunity to enjoy a local mountain that maybe they couldn't have ever done without our help. Whether it was financial support, advisement, or the lessons themselves. Chris visited the kids every Wednesday to chat about their week and how the lessons were going.

"It was amazing to watch all the kids advance as they went." Haddad Subaru is proud to have donated $2000 for this year's scholarships and is now committed to this program as it was only our first year. After seeing the impact, it truly had on these kids. Our goal is to expand to 12 children in 2024.

Haddad Subaru Marketing Director takes the stage for ALS

It was an absolutely perfect day on May 28th in the town of Lee Massachusetts as small tents went up and food vendors arrived for the first ever town scholarship fundraiser for ALS in honor of the late Police Chief Jeff Roosa. It really "hit home" when the 47-year-old community leader passed away from ALS in 2021 after being diagnosed in 2017.

When Beth Maturevich, Marketing Director for Haddad Subaru heard about the event she immediately asked Subaru GM Chris Kramek if they could donate items or do something to help. Chris didn't even hesitate. But when Beth spoke to the organizers of the event with several offers, they had something else in mind.

Beth, who has been in the Berkshires most prominent country rock band Whiskey City for over 13 years was asked if she and her band members would instead donate stage time to make the event even that much more fun for the community. It took some finagling of schedules to get all the members together, but they were able to perform and had a great time with the 100's of people milling around that day.

"It was really amazing to see the community pull together the way they did." Maturevich said. "We have done a ton of benefits throughout the years but this one, you could tell, was really special to the town of Lee. I was just so happy that I was able to connect because of my work with Haddad Subaru but use my other talents outside of the office, to help that day. It made me excited to get even more involved with events like this using my music and the Haddad Love Promise Volunteers in anyway that we can"

Haddad Subaru teams up with Strong Little Souls
to make a memorable day for families battling pediatric cancer.

Strong Little Souls is a nonprofit based in Pittsfield, Ma. that serves families affected by pediatric cancer in a myriad of ways. Whether it is sending care packages, hosting events or fulfilling wishes. This amazing charity founded by then 13-year-old Madison Quinn in 2014, has grown tenfold in the time between then and now.

On June 25th, 2023, the first ever Family Fun Day was held at Tribute Farm in Cheshire for 65 attendees from 12pm-4pm. The event was created to be attended by families directly affected by pediatric cancer. Strong Little Souls had high hopes for this event, and thanks to the support from Haddad Subaru the event was "more of a success than we could've imagined," Said Quinn.

The volunteers from Haddad secured the Biggin's Diggin's food truck that donated food for the all the attendees. Owner Terry Bishop and his wife Jennifer were happy to help when Beth Maturevich, Marketing Director for Haddad Subaru made the call. Beth and the Bishop family have worked together on other charities, and she knew they would help with this wonderful event. Terry couldn't say enough how honored he and Jennifer were to be a part of such a special day. "It's all about the kids" Terry said, "the older you get you realize how important it is to help when courageous kids like these are in need".

When Beth (who is also a musician) made the second call to her music community, Bill Farrell from the band Liquid Courage responded with passion to volunteer to DJ the event for all 4 hours.

Chris Kramek, GM of Haddad Subaru was able to secure Higher Bar, a unique drink car that offered refreshing and fancy mocktails for the families on the beautiful sunny day. Chris and his daughter were there for the duration of the day helping wherever they were needed.

Maddison said, "The Haddad Subaru volunteers decorated the venue, helped with set up and clean up, and even helped to create activities for the families that were a huge hit."

The Haddad Subaru fun tent included painting beautiful message rocks with anything from rainbows to hearts, to spaceships and many other creative ideas. The kids enjoyed taking a swing at the two pinatas provided and stuffed full of goodies by the Subaru team and playing cornhole on the Haddad cornhole boards. All the children went home with a goodie bag to enjoy created by the Haddad team as well.

Countless families told Strong Little Souls founder Madison Quinn, that the event was beyond incredible, and they were already asking about the next one! "As a small organization, events like this are not possible without the support from the community. We can't wait to partner with this incredible Haddad group again to continue to support our local families affected by pediatric cancer!"