NABC®, GEICO and Gerber Collision & Glass Present a Refurbished Vehicle to Chicago-area Woman in Need through the NABC Recycled Rides® Program

Presentation to Took Place May 17 at the Gerber Collision & Glass Route 66 NHRA Nationals Presented by PEAK

Photos and Video from the Presentation Available Here

PORT CHARLOTTE, FL (May 18, 2025) – On Saturday, May 17, a woman who strives to be the best possible mother to her daughter, while also trying to improve her housing and work situations, received a life-changing gift—the donation of a beautifully refurbished vehicle to enable her to get to work and see to the needs of her daughter. The donation was made possible by the NABC Recycled Rides® program, car donor GEICO and repair partner Gerber Collision & Glass.

The presentation took place at Route 66 Raceway in Joliet in conjunction with the National Hot Rod Association’s Gerber Collision & Glass Route 66 NHRA Nationals presented by PEAK.

GEICO donated the 2019 Honda Civic, which was refurbished by the team at Gerber Collision & Glass, Naperville,

to Odessa Rodriguez, who was nominated by Family Promise of North Shore.

Rodriguez is building a stable life for herself and her school-age daughter. Currently living in a shelter, Rodriguez has worked with a case manager at Family Promise to set and meet goals, to adopt life skills and to advocate for her daughter and herself. The NABC Recycled Ride® vehicle will relieve the constant pressure around getting her child to school and extracurricular activities, and getting herself to work.  It will also facilitate Rodriguez’s search for an improved work opportunity.

Rodriguez not only received a beautiful vehicle, but got to see some great racing and experience the car presentation on the track in front of a grandstand full of race fans.

“This car will mean so much to me and my daughter,” said Rodriguez. “It will help me to get back and forth to work, and get her to school and to cheer practice. This is the biggest blessing in our lives so far and we are thankful to everyone who came together under the NABC Recycled Rides® program to make this happen. We love you!”

GEICO, a Level One member of the National Auto Body Council®, is the largest donor of vehicles to NABC Recycled Rides®, having provided more than 1,000 vehicles in the 18 years of the program.

Gerber Collision & Glass, also a Level One NABC® member, was founded 88 years ago and has grown to be one of the largest auto collision and glass repair companies in the United States. Gerber locations are all I-CAR Gold Certified collision repair centers.

“At Gerber Collision & Glass, we are super excited to be able to give back to people in our communities, and the partnership with the NABC® has enabled us to exercise that opportunity, and give our associates the chance to contribute and help people in need in the local communities that they serve,” said Brian Kaner, President and Chief Executive Officer for Boyd Group and Gerber Collision & Glass. “It was great to be out here today at the Gerber Collision & Glass NHRA Route 66 Nationals to gift this vehicle to a very deserving person.”

Enterprise was also part of the presentation and made a significant contribution to help Rodriguez with gas and vehicle maintenance.

NABC Recycled Rides® is a unique program in which businesses representing all facets of the collision repair industry team up to repair and donate vehicles to individuals and families in need of reliable transportation. Since the inception of the NABC Recycled Rides® program in 2007, members of the National Auto Body Council® have donated more than 3,500 vehicles valued at some $51 million.

Additional partners in this presentation include LKQ, O’Reilly’s Auto Parts, Chicago Wheel Service, PPG, Acorn Tire/Goodyear, Mobile Auto Solutions, Nexus Towing, Advanced Remarketing Services, Enterprise, Cars for Charity and Copart.

ABOUT THE NATIONAL AUTO BODY COUNCIL®

The National Auto Body Council® is the premier organization of collision industry partners dedicated to strategic networking opportunities that positively change lives in the communities we serve. The collaborative membership of the National Auto Body Council® has gifted more than 3,500 vehicles and provided extrication training opportunities for some 6,000 first responders in communities around the country through NABC Recycled Rides®, NABC First Responder Emergency Extrication (F.R.E.E.™) and the NABC® Community Impact program. That effort equates to a 4:1 ROI in dollar value delivered from NABC® membership dollars.

The NABC Changing and Saving Lives Foundation, a 501c3 organization, is committed to the goal of driving change for veterans, military members, first responders and families in need, while harnessing the power of the collective membership of the collision repair industry to positively impact communities where we live and work. As demand for NABC® programs like NABC Recycled Rides® and NABC F.R.E.E.™ grows, so do the needs for resources to manage these important programs. Being able to pursue grants, gifts and donations allows NABC to expand these programs to serve those in need and help communities where we live and work. For more information, visit www.NationalautoBodyCouncil.org.