Ford Donates Vehicles to Disabled American Veterans

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WASHINGTON--June 6, 2011: Through the generosity of the Ford Motor Company, the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) will be able to transport more of America’s wounded warriors who may otherwise go without needed medical care.

“Ford Motor Company is honored to support our disabled veterans by partnering with the DAV on many programs, including the DAV Transportation Network”

Ford, a longtime DAV supporter, is donating another $200,000 for the purchase of eight new vehicles for the DAV Transportation Network which provides free rides for veterans to and from their medical appointments. In addition, Ford is providing $25,000 for the purchase of a Ford Explorer for the DAV’s Washington Headquarters.

Representatives from Ford and the DAV will be available to media June 7 at 2 p.m. at the DAV’s Washington D.C. headquarters at 807 Maine Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C.

Ford Motor Company’s kindness toward America’s disabled veterans dates back to the earliest days of the DAV. When it became clear a national convention was needed to address the needs of those returning from the First World War, Henry Ford organized a cross-country caravan of 50 Model T Fords to take disabled veterans to the 1922 DAV national convention in San Francisco.

Ford is also donating $25,000 to the DAV's Jesse Brown Memorial Youth Scholarship Program. The program provides 12 scholarships to deserving young men and women who have generously volunteered their time and compassion to sick and disabled veterans in their community.

“We are extremely grateful for Ford’s generosity,” said DAV National Commander Wallace E. Tyson. “These vehicles will be used by veterans hospitals to transport wounded warriors to and from medical appointments, continually providing a vital link between thousands of sick and disabled veterans and the health care they so desperately need.”

Since 1996, Ford has donated 156 vans, worth more than $3.7 million to the DAV. That’s in addition to the 2,368 Ford vans the DAV National Organization, its Chapters, Departments and the National Service Foundation Columbia Trust have purchased since 1987, at a cost of some $51 million. These vans have all been donated to Department of Veterans Affairs hospitals for use in the Transportation Network.

“Ford Motor Company is honored to support our disabled veterans by partnering with the DAV on many programs, including the DAV Transportation Network," said Jim Vella, President, Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services. "Our partnership dates back nearly 90 years and we are continuously amazed at what our partnership has produced.”

“We also deeply appreciate Ford’s support of the Jesse Brown Youth Memorial Scholarship, as well as the $25,000 they donated to the National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic, which is a unique sports rehabilitation program for hundreds of severely disabled veterans,” Commander Tyson said. “Ford has always shown its pride in being American made, and it backs that up by reaching out with a helping hand to those who sacrificed so much to defend the American way.”

The 1.2 million-member Disabled American Veterans, a non-profit organization founded in 1920 and chartered by the U.S. Congress in 1932, represents this nation’s disabled veterans. It is dedicated to a single purpose: building better lives for our nation’s disabled veterans and their families.