Charities benefit from your old cars

Here’s a win-win-win setup.

It’s a way to get rid of that clunker that’s gathering dust in your garage or weeds in your yard, obtain a tax deduction, and also help a local charity: Give that old rig to Cars for a Cause/Idaho.

Since the program began in January 2004, North Idaho residents have donated 275 cars, plus a few boats, recreational vehicles, motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles to the program, according to Tammy Zastoupil. She’s the superintendent of Pull & Save, the salvage firm in the Spokane Valley that processes all those rigs.

The money that accrues from the sale or salvage of the vehicles is divided equally among four charities. The ultimate beneficiaries are the clients of the Community Action Partnership Food Bank, TESH, Hospice of North Idaho and Unity Church of North Idaho.

According to the agencies, they use the money to help finance the following programs:

“The Community Action Partnership Food Bank, as the name implies, provides food to low-income residents. Last year it served more than 3,700 families, including 9,000 individuals.

“TESH helps people of all ages attain greater independence, self-sufficiency and participation in the community. TESH has provided vocational training and employment opportunities, independent living skills and residential support for more than 7,000 children and adults with disabilities since 1976.

“Hospice of North Idaho helps patients nearing the end of their lives and their families. Its personnel supplement the care being given by family members or other designated caregivers. The agency provides professional medical services, pain management, and emotional and spiritual support.

“Unity Church of North Idaho encourages and supports people in achieving their highest potential. It is a spiritual center that also provides meeting space for a variety of community activities, including Alcoholics Anonymous, yoga classes, and hosts speakers representing different religions.

The food bank, hospice and Unity Church each has benefited to the tune of some $6,800 over the past two-and-a-half years, while TESH has earned $6,100 since it joined the program several months after the other three charities.

The North Idaho program is modeled on Cars for Charity which has generated income for 14 nonprofit organizations in Spokane County for the past nine years.

Roye Ely of Unity Church, the principal founder of Cars for a Cause/Idaho, said, “Our church needed additional funding, and we didn’t want to beg. So, recognizing the success of Spokane’s program, I contacted the other three agencies and we went to work.

“Everybody benefits,” she said. “The charities get some needed additional funding, donors get rid of useless property and a tax break, and the cars are recycled in an environmentally safe way.”

Debora Townsend, of TESH, says the majority of referrals have come from people who have seen the banners that the charities display on their buildings and on undeveloped properties in the Coeur d’Alene area.

“But we also use ads in newspapers and telephone books and signs on NICE buses,” she says. “And we’re starting to contact vehicle repair shops, hoping they’ll urge customers whose cars are beyond repair to donate them.”

The food bank’s Susy Kraft calls the program “fantastic,” and says, “We’re constantly working on marketing. My husband works at Tobler’s Marina on Highway 95, so you’ll notice that there’s a banner hanging there now.”

Among the donated vehicles have been a Triumph TR-7 sports car and several Ford Explorers, she says.

Most are towed in, Zastoupil explains, and a few have been sold as-is, but the majority of the donated cars have been dismantled for parts.

Pull & Save specifies that donated rigs should be clean and complete – not in pieces – and with an engine. A title must accompany the vehicle.

To donate, call (208) 664-9996. If the rig can’t be driven, bring the title to Unity Church, 4465 N. 15th St. in Coeur d’Alene, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday. After the title is conveyed, the car will be towed away.

If the car can be driven, a donor should take it with the title to Unity Church or to the Pull & Save facility at 10414 E. Knox Ave. in Spokane Valley.

Hospice executive director Paul Weil said he and his staff are thankful for the money rendered by the program, and he hopes that it develops into a consistent source of income.

He also cautioned donors to consult an accountant to determine the value to claim for a donation.

“IRS rules that took effect in January 2005 limit a donor’s deduction to $500 without documentation that the vehicle was actually worth more than that to the organization to which it was donated,” Weil said.