To help individuals with high level disabilities obtain wheelchair accessible vehicles needed to get to work and achieve their dreams for independence.
On Thursday April 7th 5pm-9pm we will have our 2nd Dine For Drive For Independence at Isaac’s in East York. Everyone has to eat so this is a super simple way to support Drive For Independence. Print out the flyer using the PDF link below (or stop by to see us on Saturday April 2nd to pick one up), fill it out and give it to your waiter/waitress. It can even be used on take out orders! Once we have $100 in sales that evening Isaac’s will donate 25% of the total sales for that evening to us Can’t join us that evening? Get a gift card for later and 15% of the value of the gift card will go towards the fundraising event.
The 3rd Annual Upshift Summer Bash is moving to a new location! We’re excited to announce we will be at the Antique Automobile Club of America Museum in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Join us on Saturday July 30th 10am-4pm for the 3rd Annual Upshift Summer Bash at the AACA Museum 161 Museum Dr, Hershey, Pennsylvania 17033. There will be plenty of cars, trucks, and motorcycles to pique your interest an much more! Enjoy music, a variety of food trucks, and a great group of vendors ranging from car care to crafters and artisans. Bring the entire family! Your car registration donation includes 1 admission to the museum. Pre-register at the discounted rate of $20.00 (use the Square Up link below or send in your registration using one of our pre-registration forms in the link below). The day of the show is $25.00. Additional visitor tickets to the museum are regular museum admission price (See this link to purchase tickets to the museum only: http://www.aacamuseum.org/visit/hours-rates/ ). Unless you want to visit the museum, spectators are free.
We will be raising funds for Drive For Independence. Our goal is to help adults with physical disabilities get the transportation they need to get to work. Please join us to help others reach their goals in life!
We are looking for vendors and sponsors. Vendor spaces are $25 with a silent auction/ticket auction donation and$35 without. Sponsorship levels are Bronze $50,
silver $100.00 (1 trophy/class plus what is listed in the letter), Gold $250 (3 trophies/class plus what is listed in letter), Platinum (only 2 spaces available large trophy best of show or People’s Choice).
Classes are listed below in the sponsorship letter. Please see links below to register. We are currently looking for sponsors, vendors, and food trucks. We currently have a DJ- T1 DJ Services by Travis Workinger. Interested sponsors please see the sponsorship letter below. If you would like to register as a sponsor, vendor, or food truck please contact us for an application: Driveforindependence@gmail.com.
Heather Sloat
Drive For Independence
Upshift Summer Bash 2016
PO Box 20752
York PA 17402
/ /2016
Dear ,
Drive for Independence is an organization dedicated to helping individuals with high level disabilities obtain wheelchair accessible vehicles needed to drive themselves to work and achieve their dreams of independence. We have already helped one individual achieve his dream. Christopher Sauerbaum along with his wife and many other dedicated individuals raised the funds needed for a down payment on his Truck that was recently converted for his specific needs. He is now able to drive himself to work and run everyday errands without relying on a bus or someone else to drive. After meeting his goal they decided to immediately work on paying it forward and help others meet the same goal of being able to drive themselves to work and lead an overall more independent life.
Our annual Upshift Summer Bash car show is one of our largest fundraisers. Upshift Summer Bash 2016 will be held on Saturday, July 30th, 2016 at the AACA Museum in Hershey PA and will showcase a variety of vehicles including cars, trucks and motorcycles with everything from classics to tuners. We are seeking the support of business and private sponsors. There are several possible ways to support this event including Sponsorship, donation to the silent auction and raffle, and door prizes.
We are also accepting donations to the silent auction (donations worth over $50.00) / ticket auction ( items valued under $50.00) to be held during the event. The items will be on display throughout the event for the public to bid on. Each item will include a card with information about the item including the value and who it was donated by. Corporate sponsorship is not necessary to make a donation to the silent auction. All donations are greatly appreciated.
Platinum, Gold and Silver Sponsorship Levels are limited and will go on a first come basis. We encourage all interested sponsors to return the sponsorship form as soon as possible to ensure inclusion of your logo on promotional materials. Logo must be in .JPEG, .PSD, or .EPS format and at least 150dpi (300dpi preferred).
Please e-mail your artwork to: driveforindependence@gmail.com.
We thank you for your consideration in supporting our Upshift Summer Bash 2016 and ultimately our mission with Drive for Independence in helping individuals with high level disabilities reach their goal of being able to drive themselves to work and achieve a new level of independence.
We look forward to seeing you join us at the Upshift Summer Bash 2016 being held at the AACA Museum in Hershey, located at 131 Museum Dr, Hershey, PA 17033 .
Thank you for your continuing support,
Heather Sloat
As an Upshift Summer Bash 2016 sponsor you will receive recognition in a variety of ways:
Platinum Level $300
⦁ A vendor spot at the event
⦁ Logo or business information in the program
⦁ Option to include fliers, promotional material, or samples in the Give away bag
⦁ Logo on Dash Plaques
⦁ Logo on banners and fliers
⦁ Sponsorship of the Best of Show trophy OR People’s Choice trophy (these trophies will be larger and more elaborate than the other classes)
Silver Level $100 (sponsorship of single trophy for the chosen class) OR Gold Level $250 (Sponsorship of 3 trophies for 1st,2nd, 3rd for the chosen class)
⦁ A vendor spot at the event
⦁ Logo or business information in the program
⦁ Option to include fliers, promotional material, or samples in the Give away bag
⦁ Logo on banners and fliers
⦁ Option to Judge sponsored class
Class Choices:
Pre-1955
1955-1980’s Mopar
1955-1980’s Ford
1955-1980’s GM
1980’s to present Mopar
1980’s to present GM
1980’s to present Ford
Classic Euro
Modern Euro
Classic Imports (non euro)
Modern Imports (non euro)
Classic Street Truck
Modern street Truck
Mini Trucks
Off road trucks/ Jeeps/ SUV’s
Open/Specialty Class
Motorcycle
Bronze Level $50.00
⦁ Vendor space at the event
⦁ Logo or business information in the program
⦁ Option to include fliers, promotional material, or samples in the Give away bag
Any questions please contact me via email at driveforindependence@gmail.com
or by phone 717-991-5921.
The Abilities Expo was a humbling and eye opening experience. Being there as a consumer is one thing but being there and interacting and talking with public as an organization is a completely different experience. We found out some great information and found other organizations to work with.
After talking with many people, we are definitely on the right track and Drive For Independence is a much needed organization. We are looking forward to more opportunities and want to grow and expand all over the country and we will definitely be pursuing our 501(c)3 status in the new year.
We hope to attend the Abilities Expo in May and would definitely like to attend the DC Expo again. A big thank you to our sponsors Meeting Well and Mobility Works for making our trip possible and being able to share Drive For Independence in a new community!
We look forward to what the new year will bring and the anticipation of future Abilities Expos!
We’d like to to thank everyone who helped make our first annual Drive For Independence Holiday Bazaar a success! It was a great day despite the slow traffic.
We had a gorgeous space, wonderful organic, gluten-free, and vegan food options, and yummy chicken corn soup for starters. We had an awesome group of supportive vendors, many unique handmade goods such as soaps, candles, jewelry, and decor as well as favorite home-based vendors such as Pampered Chef, Tastefully Simple, Perfectly Posh, and LulaRoe. Santa also stopped by for a visit! We even had visits from ABC27 (ABC27 Story) and CBS21 (Local21 Story). Use the blue links to visit. Thank you to everyone who made the day a success!
Our ticket auction alone raised $70! After all expenses we were able to raise 189.35! Thank you for helping to raise money towards our start-up and program costs as we work towards helping adults with disabilities get the transportation they need for work and fulfilling their goals!
We are announcing some of our upcoming fundraisers. We’ve created the calendar and our Holiday Bazaar is Saturday Nov. 21st.
Calendars are ready! They are $12.00 a piece. They are a standard 12-month wall calendar size, 11″×17″. The calendars feature winners of our first 2 Upshift Summer Bash car shows. We have a PayPal link below to order.(there is a shipping charge if we need to ship). When you go to order you will have to input $12.00 for each calendar you want (ex 1 calendar would be $12, 2 calendars would be $24 etc.) If you need a shipping quote or have questions please use the contact form to get in touch with us before ordering. You can also order by sending a check or money order made out to Heather Sloat or Chris Sauerbaum with a note stating Drive for Independence Calendar. Send the check/money order to Drive For Independence, PO Box 20752 York PA 17402. Orders and money due by Thursday, November 5th, 2015.
We will be holding our Holiday Bazaar Saturday November 21st, 2015 10am-4pm at the Agape Professional Center, 907 Roosevelt Ave, York PA 17404. We are looking for vendors, including a few food vendors. We are planning to have a Santa with a photographer. We are also looking for volunteers to help with a gift wrapping station. If you can give an hour or 2 of your time to help in the gift wrapping station, please let us know. Please contact us via driveforindependence@gmail.com or our Drive For Independence Face Book Page.
We would also like to help out our friends at ABLE-Services ( part of the Leg Up Farm Family) by collecting needed supplies for their program for Christmas. We will have a box at the bazaar for donations and if you have a business where you would like to place a box to collect items please contact us. here is a list of the types of items they are looking for. This is their Amazon wish list but items do not need to be purchased from Amazon and similar items may be purchased. Games, Art kits, and fitness items are favorites of Able-Services participants. Able Services Wish List
With the press of a button on the key fob, the driver’s side and rear doors of Chris Sauerbaum’s pearly white GMC extended-cab pickup truck popped open and began to move outward.
About a minute later, the door was in position — about four feet from the truck body — and the wheelchair lift was on the ground. Sauerbaum, 33, of York City, maneuvered himself into position for the ride into the driver’s compartment.
Another minute or so later, Sauerbaum, who has a physical disability resulting from chronic inflammatory polyneuropathy, was in position behind the steering wheel, joysticks in hand and ready to roll.
Chris Sauerbaum of York City demonstrates the door lift on his custom GMC pickup truck at Cousler Park Thursday, Sept. 17, 2015. Sauerbaum, who suffers from a rare form of muscular dystrophy, has no legs and had the truck outfitted so he could operate it. Bill Kalina – bkalina@yorkdispatch.com
The truck, especially when the doors open, is a head-turner.
“You might as well be driving a Lamborghini,” Sauerbaum said.
But driving anything is what makes him happy. It’s something he’s wanted to do for more than a decade.
Driver: The journey to getting Sauerbaum behind the wheel of his own car started 11 years ago. The process has cost thousands of dollars and borne numerous setbacks.
He originally bought a Chrysler PT Cruiser with hopes of converting it to work with his disabilities. But it couldn’t be outfitted with the needed joystick controls.
Finally in 2013, Sauerbaum and wife Heather Sloat started an appeal for donations to raise money for a down payment on the pickup truck.
They raised the needed $10,000, including a $2,500 donation from Oletowne Jewelers, 2157 White St. in West Manchester Township, and made the down payment on the GMC Sierra pickup a few months ago.
The truck was then sent off to undergo a $91,000 conversion, which was covered by the state Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, and the family of four finally took delivery of it about three weeks ago.
Chris Sauerbaum of York City demonstrates the capabilities of his custom GMC pickup truck at Cousler Park Thursday, Sept. 17, 2015. Sauerbaum, who suffers from a rare form of muscular dystrophy, has no legs and had the truck outfitted so he could operate it. Bill Kalina – bkalina@yorkdispatch.com
“Think of it as a big (remote controlled) car. An 8,000 pound R/C car,” Sauerbaum said of the added electronics that allow him to operate the truck.
The pickup features two joysticks in the driver’s compartment. One allows him to feed the engine gas and to brake, and the other controls steering.
It took Sauerbaum a week and a half of training to get ready for the road.
Easier life: Driving not only gives Sauerbaum the freedom of the road but also frees up Sloat’s day.
In the past, she’d have to drive him to work, racking up 80 miles on the odometer each day, she said.
Now that Sauerbaum has his truck, he and Sloat want to help others in similar situations get behind the wheel.
They are working to gain 501(c)(3) status for Drive for Independence, a nonprofit organization they are starting to help people with disabilities navigate the process of getting a converted car that meets their needs.
“It’s just one piece of the puzzle to get people to work,” Sloat said.
The truck also met with approval during a recent car show in Mountville, Lancaster County. It took home first place in the street truck/SUV class at the Turn Up the Pink Car Show, Sloat said.
Sauerbaum and Sloat’s two 6-year-old boys, Tucker and Harley Sauerbaum, were anxiously awaiting their ride in the truck. But first, they needed new car seats.
Harley wasn’t always so keen on the truck.
Sloat and Sauerbaum showed the boys a video of Sauerbaum testing out a similar truck. As the doors slid open and Sauerbaum prepared to get in, Harley got a horrified look on his face and started crying.
“Harley said, ‘Why is that Transformer eating Daddy?'” Sloat said.
We made a lofty goal of $2000 for this year’s event
and have fallen just a little short.
We need your help! To help raise the remaining $200,
we have added a few incentives!!!
Donations are being accepted in person, by mail and via PayPal. For your convenience, use the Paypal link below to donate or use the contact form to contact us for our mailing address or to set up an in person meet. When making your donation, please be sure to include your mailing address. This will help us to send your gift out to you! If you are local and would like to pick up your gift, please let us know!
The donation incentives are as follows:
For each $5 donation, we will send you one of the commemorative Upshift Summer Bash drawstring backpack!
For each $10 donation, we will send you a Lower ’48 Tucker Reproduction by Rob Ida poster and the commemorative Upshift Summer Bash drawstring backpack!
For each $15 donation, we will send you one of our Drive for Independence Key Chains, in addition to the commemorative Upshift Summer Bash drawstring backpack, and Lower ’48 Tucker Reproduction by Rob Ida poster!
Thank you for your ongoing support of Drive For Independence!
These guys are true car builders! We can’t wait for you to meet them at the UPSHIFT Summer Bash. IDA Automotive and Preston Tucker LLC are 2 of our Gold sponsors.
![20150312_172437[1]](https://driveforindependence.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/20150312_1724371.jpg)
![20150312_171233[1]](https://driveforindependence.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/20150312_1712331.jpg)
![20150312_172844[1]](https://driveforindependence.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/20150312_1728441.jpg)
![20150312_172310[1]](https://driveforindependence.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/20150312_1723101.jpg)
Drive for Independence 
