Presentation of the NABC Recycled Ride® Took Place November 21, 2025, at Gerber Collision & Glass in Portland, OR
MEDIA NOTE: Photos and Video from the NABC Recycled Rides® presentation are available HERE
PORT CHARLOTTE, FL (November 26, 2025) – On Friday, November 21, an Oregon veteran received the gift of reliable transportation—this beautifully refurbished vehicle will help him chart a new path forward for himself and his daughter. The donation was made possible by the NABC Recycled Rides® program, vehicle donor GEICO and repair partner Gerber Collision & Glass.
The presentation took place at the Gerber Collision & Glass location in Portland, OR. The recipient was nominated by Fort Kennedy. Fort Kennedy helps connect veterans with the benefits they earned through service to our country, in addition to providing clothing, food, hygiene items and other essential services to unhoused and low-income veterans living in and around Portland, OR.
A 2018 Hyundai Tucson SE, donated by GEICO and refurbished by the technicians at Gerber Collision & Glass, was presented to Johnathan Bernard. He is a United States Marine Corps veteran who served in Afghanistan, earning the Afghanistan Campaign Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Medal and the NATO Medal for his outstanding service. After four years as a Marine, Bernard continued his commitment to our country by joining the United States Air Force Reserves for an additional year. As a teenager, he became a caretaker for his younger siblings while his mother battled brain cancer. Following his service, Bernard pursued higher education and a bachelor’s degree in communications. But in 2023, he lost his job and, one month later, his mother passed away from colon cancer. By year’s end, his only mode of transportation, a motorcycle, broke down beyond repair. The compounded losses sent him into a difficult spiral, triggering both Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and additional struggles. Today, he is charting a new path forward for himself and his 4-year-old daughter. Bernard is back in school, studying fitness and kinesiology and working part-time as he rebuilds his life with resilience and resolve. Without reliable transportation, he currently walks and takes public transportation to meet his family and academic obligations. This refurbished vehicle from the NABC Recycled Rides® program will be a transformative gift, restoring his mobility, expanding his opportunities and empowering a fresh start.
GEICO, a Level One partner of the National Auto Body Council®, has donated more than a thousand vehicles to people and organizations through NABC Recycled Rides, making it the largest car donor partner of NABC Recycled Rides.
Gerber Collision & Glass, a Level One member of the NABC®, was founded in 1937 as a single glass and trim shop and has grown to be one of the largest auto collision and glass repair companies in North America. Gerber Collision & Glass locations are all I-CAR Gold Certified repair facilities.
Additional partners in this presentation include: West Coast Mobile Detail, Automotive Reboot, Tonkins Parts Center, Advanced Remarketing Services, Cars for Charity and Copart.
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.
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 opportunities for some 6,000 First Responders in communities around the country through NABC Recycled Rides® and NABC First Responder Emergency Extrication (F.R.E.E.™). 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.