Arbogast Buick GMC Raises Money for Local Abuse Shelter

News Release 1/4/11 – A Facebook campaign led by a local automobile dealership to help raise money for the Family Abuse Shelter of Miami County this holiday season proved to be more successful than expected.

On Wednesday, Blake Arbogast from Dave Arbogast Buick GMC Vans RVs presented the shelter’s director Barbara Holman with a check for $2,500 from the dealership.

With the current tough economic times everyone is facing, the donation means much more to the shelter than anyone from the dealership would have ever realized.

“This has been a difficult economic time not only for us, but especially for those in the community suffering from domestic violence,” Holman said.

Holman added the shelter was anticipating having to cut a few of its services.

“Thanks to this donation we’re going to be able to avoid that now,” she said.

When Arbogast set out to raise funds for the local organization through the dealership’s Facebook page, he never expected the level of generosity from the community that would follow. The plan was simple. From Dec. 3 through Christmas, the dealership donated $1 for every person who clicked the “like” button on the Facebook page. On Dec. 15, the dealership upped the ante to $2 for every click.

The plan paid off.

Based on fan response, the dealership was able to raise $900 for the shelter. They also ended up adding an additional $1,600 to the pot bringing the total to $2,500.

“The response was overwhelming,” Arbogast said. “It may not have seemed like much, but the money raised by all those ‘like’ button clicks are going to help out some members of the community who have been through more than most of us will ever know.”

The Family Abuse Shelter of Miami County was founded by Holman’s mother, the late Barbel Adkins, more than 20 years ago. Located in Troy, the shelter works with an average of 600 victims of domestic violence each year. Last year, the shelter provided emergency shelter services to 108 adult female victims of domestic violence and 97 children.