ISIS has been seen frequently in the news, but there is a new terror group on the rise called Boko Haram. This is the group responsible for kidnapping a large number of students in Nigeria.

The images of hundreds of Nigerian schoolgirls taken by Boko Haram last April are hard to erase from our minds. The girls were violently kidnapped while sleeping at their boarding school in the middle of the night. One potential reason behind this kidnapping could be the fact that the Boko Haram group is against Western education.

Many of you may remember the global hashtag #BringBackOurGirls that trended worldwide on social media. The popularity of the story and hashtag grew so large that it reached the White House. Time has quickly went by as it has been a year and a half since the tragic incident occurred. To date, 219 girls from a town in Nigeria called Chibok still remain captive. However, 57 girls have managed to escape.

Emmanuel Ogebe, a Human rights lawyer of Northern Virginia has helped bring over a dozen girls here to the United States. The most recent girl just arrived here last month.

?Being here reduces the trauma of living in the shadows of the terrorists and the terror threat,? said Ogebe.

Ogebe found himself easy to relate to the girls because he was also a political prisoner in Nigeria. He originally came to the U.S. are a two month period of being tortured and interrogated.

?We are talking about just abduction off of the street ? taken away ? no one knows where you are,? he said.

Now, Ogebe has made the choice to dedicate his life to helping other victims of similar traumatic experiences, like Saalome, who spoke to us about the night she was taken.

?They said that we should say our last prayer. That they?re going to kill all of us,? she said.

Easterns Automotive Group partnered with Fox 5 to help Ogebe out with such a great cause. Easterns donated twelve complete sets of luggage for each of the girls that were rescued by Ogebe. The girls had their belongings still in bags from their trip from Nigeria. It is great to know that the generous folks from Easterns were able to help out and bring a smile to these young girls faces.

Easterns Automotive Group has partnered with FOX 5 DC to help honor people in the DC, Maryland, and Virginia community who go above and beyond the call. If you know someone worthy if being recognized, Click here to nominate them – http://www.fox5dc.com/pay-it-forward

Link to original story: http://www.fox5dc.com/news/pay-it-forward/56453781-story

A Manassas Boy Scout troop had their trailer full of camping gear stolen. However, things quickly changed into a positive direction when a local business owner made the choice to help in and help.

Boy Scout Troop #43 used the Grace Church parking lot to store the trailer including over $10,000 of camping gear. The theft occurred during the night that they were planning to travel to West Virginia for an overnight camping trip.

?I told them, ?Hey guys, sometimes bad things happen. It?s a matter of what we do now with that defines our character,? Troop leader Roger Henderson told the boys.

A surprise would soon be on it?s way. Robert Bassam, CEO of Easterns Automotive Group, saw the report and felt tremendously bad that someone could steal from children. He took it upon himself to get involved as he normally does, especially in the community. Bassam has always been generous so it is no surprise he would be this way in this scenario also. On behalf of Easterns Automotive Group, Bassam gifted Troop 43 a brand new trailer as well as $2500 in gift cards to help get new equipment.

“I’m not often speechless ? but this is crazy,” Henderson said.

“When we saw your story, we knew we had to get involved,” Bassam told Henderson the Troop. He even offered to give more if needed.

Easterns Automotive Group has partnered with FOX 5 DC to help honor people in the DC, Maryland, and Virginia community who go above and beyond the call. If you know someone worthy if being recognized, Click here to nominate them – http://www.fox5dc.com/pay-it-forward

Link to original story: http://www.fox5dc.com/news/pay-it-forward/139881966-story

Allison Seymour of Fox 5 recently shared the story of the founder of Ruth’s Miracle Group Home Foundation, Veronica Alston.

Ruth’s Miracle Group Home Foundation has been located in Lusby, Maryland since 2009. The purpose for this residence is to assist women looking for a fresh start after traumatic experiences with drugs, alcohol, incarceration, homelessness and domestic violence.

Veronica is able to understand of the women looking for help because she once was an addict herself. She has dedicated her life to helping women get out of similar hardships that she faced.

Veronica has made it possible for the women to have anger and parenting classes, weekly meetings, volunteering, chores and meditation. Women are given the opportunity to find what works for them to help them get back on the right path. The overall goal for the women in the program is to live a healthy and independent life.

When we last spoke with Veronica, she told us that her group was in need of a van to transport the women.

Fox 5 and Easterns Automotive Group were so touched by her story that they decided to gift her with a brand new van to help her foundation. She was overcome with joy!

Easterns Automotive Group has partnered with FOX 5 DC to help honor people in the DC, Maryland, and Virginia community who go above and beyond the call. If you know someone worthy if being recognized, Click here to nominate them – http://www.fox5dc.com/pay-it-forward

Link to original story: http://www.fox5dc.com/news/pay-it-forward/2538545-story

Service dogs have been known to sooth some children with severe autism. Parents of children with autism are beginning to seek service dogs for help. Amy Hoffman and her family have been working hard to raise $13,000. This is the amount that they will need to have a service dog trained for their son, Eiji.

At just four years old, Eiji suffers from regular seizures. The Hoffmann family has joined forces with an Ohio non-profit called 4 Paws for Ability. They have raised about $6,000 thus far ? which is half is what they needed.

During this time, their other son, 2-year-old Kai, has also been diagnosed with autism. As if this wasn?t enough, their townhome in Woodbridge has been broken into. Needless to say, this has been quite a difficult time for the Hoffman family.

Amy was unaware that FOX 5 wouldn?t be her only visitor on Thursday. A surprise was also on the way.

Joel Bassam of Easterns Automotive Group had just made a deposit of $6,915 to the Hoffman?s fundraising account. This amount is the balance needed to meet their goal in order to get Eiji his service dog.

?We?ve been in this community for 26 years and we?re always looking for great ways to give back,? Bassam said. ?We just want to touch the lives of the people we give to. It?s one of those things that is just a perfect fit for us.?

?I don?t know who this guy is, but I just want to hug him,? Hoffman said after greeting Bassam. ?Thank you so much. I can?t say it enough.?

It will take approximately 15 months for Eiji?s dog to be trained

Easterns Automotive Group has partnered with FOX 5 DC to help honor people in the DC, Maryland, and Virginia community who go above and beyond the call. If you know someone worthy if being recognized, Click here to nominate them – http://www.fox5dc.com/pay-it-forward

Link to original story: http://www.fox5dc.com/news/archive/1489727-story

The month of December is a busy month for all of us all with Christmas right around the corner. Kelly Lavin was shopping like the rest of us during the holiday season but doing it for a different cause.

Kelly runs a Virginia based charity called Our Neighbor?s Child. This charity helps more than 700 families during the holiday season.

Last month, Beth Parker from Fox 5 did a story on Kelly and her generous efforts.

Little did she know that she was in for a surprise. On Tuesday morning, Kelly joined Holly Morris from Fox 5 to discuss how things went with her charity. During the visit, Easterns Automotive Group decided to contribute and gift Kelly?s foundation with a truck full of toys to help the children next year. She was very emotional accepting the generous contribution from Easterns.

Easterns Automotive Group has partnered with FOX 5 DC to help honor people in the DC, Maryland, and Virginia community who go above and beyond the call. If you know someone worthy if being recognized, Click here to nominate them – http://www.fox5dc.com/pay-it-forward

Link to original story: http://www.fox5dc.com/news/pay-it-forward/1491798-story

Fox 5 DC and Easterns Automotive Group partnered up again to give back during the holidays. The two have partnered up quite a bit during the last few years to help those in need. They created a segment called ?Pay It Forward? that highlights them being generous and helping needing assistance.

In December 2016, a woman by the name of Catherine caught their attention. Catherine works year round as a volunteer for the Prince George?s County Salvation Army. She gives her undivided time and attention to those in need all while recovering from a health scare of her own. About 10 years ago, Catherine suffered a stroke that really set her back. Allison Seymore of Fox 5 was joined by Easterns Automotive Group to give Catherine a surprise.

?I didn?t know my name, I did not read and write. I didn?t know anything,? she explained.

Easterns took it a step further and donated $1,000 to the Prince George?s County Salvation Army to help out with their expenses. Catherine took the time to thank Easterns Autmotive Group and Fox 5 DC for the tremendous help during the holidays. We need more generous people like Catherine and the Salvation Army in this world!

Easterns Automotive Group has partnered with FOX 5 DC to help honor people in the DC, Maryland, and Virginia community who go above and beyond the call. If you know someone worthy if being recognized, Click here to nominate them – http://www.fox5dc.com/pay-it-forward

Link to original story: http://www.fox5dc.com/news/pay-it-forward/1491798-story

 

Easterns Charity | Fox 5 DC | Pay It Forward | Prince George?s County Salvation Army

 

 

Every year the biggest and most important figures of the automotive industry come together and gather at the NADA Convention and Expo. For those unfamiliar, NADA stands for National Automobile Dealers Association. The entire convention lasts for weekend an entire weekend with different events, exhibits, and seminars happening on each day. This is the time when the car dealers are able to meet face-to-face with the top tier executives of the major auto manufactures. The NADA Convention is something that car dealers truly look forward to each and every year because it brings together car dealers from all over the country. Consider this event a giant family reunion for automotive industry.

The special aspect about the NADA Convention is that is in a different city every year. This allows everyone the opportunity to network and enjoy the same festivities in a new city. The NADA Convention for 2017 was just held in New Orleans, Louisiana at the end of January. 2017 marks a special year for NADA because they are celebrating 100 years of service to dealers. Robert Bassam (CEO) and Joel Bassam (Director of Marketing) went to represent on behalf of Easterns Automotive Group. According to them, the highlight of the convention did not really involve cars in particular, it involved giving back. Hearing this is not a surprise since charity and giving back are a huge part of the Easterns DNA. Easterns has a long-running relationship with ADESA Auto Auction. ADESA made the charitable choice to auction off vehicle for the Canine Companions for Independence nonprofit organization and the NADA Foundation. Robert Bassam placed the first winning bid of $39,000 for the Polaris UTV. After Robert won the Polaris, he decided to donate it back to ADESA to be re-auctioned. The Polaris was won again by Joe Verde, president of Joe Verde Group in San Juan Capistrano, California who placed a bid of $26,000. Mr. Verde also donated the vehicle back to be re-auctioned. The vehicle was won a third time by Joel Bassam who laced the winning bid of $28,000. The combined total of the money from the auction and the cash donations came to $94,423.

For those unfamiliar, Canine Companions for Independence is a non-profit organization that was founded in 1975. The purpose of this organization is to provide highly trained assistance dogs to enhance the lives of people with disabilities, particularly veterans and children. Retired Army Sgt. Steve Blackman and his service dog, Gottlieb, attended the NADA convention this year to represent Canine Companions. He was able to speak on his disabilities and how having a service dog not only gives one companionship but also offers immense help and support. The NADA Foundation supports various causes such as emergency medical care as well as higher education. It?s certain to say that the money raised this year will definitely be put to good use.

(Photo Includes ? Jeff Carlson, 2016 NADA Chairman; Annette Sykora, NADA Foundation chair; Joe Verde, president of Joe Verde Group; Robert Bassam and Joel Bassam from Easterns Automotive Group; Peter Welch, NADA president; and Stephanie St- Hilaire, ADESA president and CEO)

Eastern Motors Charity | Canine Companions for Independence | ADESA Charity Auction