Since Steve Taylor Sr. opened his first dealership here in Toledo in 1979, the Taylor family has been working to make Toledo a better place, donating to charities, schools and non-profits as well as volunteering and working on committees and boards. Steve instilled this love for giving back to the community in his son, Steve Taylor Jr., who watched his father give back to the community for many years and wanted to do the same.
For over 30 years, the Taylor Automotive Family has been committed to making a difference in the Northwest Ohio region, combining their love of selling cars, connecting with the community and philanthropy in their work at the dealership.
“It’s different from any company, and definitely different from any auto dealership,” Steve Taylor Jr. said.
The Taylor Automotive Family has been vital to the well-being of our community, giving back to many organizations. The company has five full-time staff members working as the Community Ambassador Team to find ways to give back to the Northwest Ohio region, including Lima, Findlay, Toledo and Sylvania.
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“It’s been great,” Taylor said. “We’ve been able to establish so many partnerships with local organizations. One of our ambassadors, Tom Cole, says it best: ‘We’re not just trying to cut a check; sure we give money, but it’s more about creating these relationships with local organizations.’”
Three local organizations that the Taylor Automotive Family has partnered with recently include Unruly Arts, Connecting Kids to Meals and the Toledo Clinic Cancer Centers.
For the fourth year in a row, the Taylor Automotive Family will “kick the cars out” of the Perrysburg Hyundai dealership and turn it into an art gallery.
Artists from Unruly Arts, an art studio for people with disabilities, display their artwork inside the dealership while enjoying food, drinks and live music. The pieces are available to purchase to raise money for the local studio.
“We’ve got a whole corner of the dealership set up with the artwork from them we’ve bought,” Taylor said.
The company is also committed to helping the hunger crisis here in Lucas County. The Taylor Family works with Connecting Kids to Meals, a local non-profit that provides hot, nutritious meals to low-income children in the Toledo area.
“Food insecurity is still mind-boggling – that there’s so many kids that are hungry. So many people take it for granted,” Taylor said.
Not only have they donated food to the organization and volunteered to put food bags together, but they also helped the organization obtain a van that has helped them serve more members in the community.
Another organization the company has partnered with that is deeply meaningful to the Taylor family is the Toledo Clinic Cancer Center.
In January the Taylor Automotive Family donated $1 million to the clinic to assist in the formation of the Taylor Cancer Research Center, which will allow cancer patients to participate in innovative cancer treatments right here in Toledo, including Precision-driven therapy.
“We are excited to bring the same type of precision-driven therapies that are currently available in other large cities across the United States to Toledo and the Northwest Ohio region,” Taylor said.
The Taylor family hopes that their philanthropic effort in our community inspires other organizations and companies to do the same.
“We feel like if other organizations or people see us getting involved and giving back, hopefully, other people will be inspired to do the same thing,” Taylor said. “It’s working; we’ve seen other dealerships and businesses doing a lot. All the dealerships work so well together and do so much for the community.”
For more information on the Taylor Automotive Family’s philanthropy, visit taylorcares.org.
