Dealership retains holiday spirit

     By Leanne Mieszala
     View staff writer
      The spirit of giving goes above and beyond the holidays for the employees at Tom Saiita's Integrity Chrysler Plymouth located at 2100 S. Decatur Blvd.
      Each month, the dealership donates $75 for every vehicle they sell to a worthy local charity selected as charity of the month.
      With both the Chrysler Plymouth and Dodge dealerships serving as contributors to the program, donations have doubled, Saiita said.
      "We donate to a different local charity every month," said Saiita, referring to the 50 to 60 requests he receives on a monthly basis. "It's our way of giving something back to our community which supports us."
      During its first year of implementation, the Integrity Chrysler Plymouth Charity of the Month program donated $115,000.
      "There are no words to express how it makes you feel when you know you can really make a difference," Saiita said. "Our charities have ranged from precious small children with AIDS to keeping kids off the streets and giving them hope. The results have been overwhelming. Increased business and a positive dealership image in our community."
      Some of the area's benefactors include United Cerebral Palsy, Las Vegas Branch of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Helen J. Stewart School for Mentally Challenged Children and the Suicide Prevention Center, to name a few.
      For the month of December, Integrity Chrysler Plymouth teamed up with the State of Nevada and Department of Human Resources and provided a holiday bash for 200 of the valley's neediest children and their families.
      After contacting the Welfare Department to obtain the names of these worthy children, each of the kids was given a pencil and piece of paper.
      "We told them to write down three or four things they wanted for Christmas, if they could have anything they wanted within a range of about $75 per gift," Saiita said. "Every child had a wish list, and those wishes were all met."
      The entire expense for the party and gifts was paid for by Integrity Chrysler Plymouth as its Charity of the Month.
      This whole concept began in 1992 during a tent sale that was being held at the dealership.
      A gentleman who had been purchasing cars from the dealership for quite some time also happened to be a minister of the Philadelphia Church of God in Christ located on the west side of town.
      This man approached Saiita and told him if he wanted to stir up some emotion at one of his future sales events, he would bring over the Queenettes Drum and Bugle Corps to perform for the crowds.
      This group of black performers ranged in age from 3 to 16.
      A couple months later, Saiita ran another sale and took the gentleman up on his offer.
      After loaning him two or three vans to transport the children to the sale grounds, Saiita noticed the vans pulling in loaded with people but didn't pay much attention to them at the time.
      "All of a sudden, there was the sound of drums, everyone looked up and here came these kids," he said. "They were amazing."
      Saiita later learned this minister and his brother actually formed the group in order to keep the kids off the streets, away from drugs, in church and in school.
      What Saiita found disturbing was following each of their performances the kids could be seen taking off their boots and passing them along to the others to use during their exhibition. This told him they didn't have enough boots or uniforms to go around.
      Impressed and overwhelmed by the group's presentation, Saiita went inside, cut a check for $500 and handed it to the minister telling him to buy the kids some uniforms and things.
      After learning of the church's financial hardships that prohibited them from getting their heating and air conditioning fixed and some holes in the roof repaired, Saiita decided to donate $50 for every car sold the following month. The contributions for the month amounted to about $11,000.
      Upon hearing of the dealership's act of kindness, an area Jewish synagogue approached Saiita who in turn donated $75 from every car sale to their cause, and it has continued to grow from there.
      "Our goal is to continue this worthwhile project knowing our involvement can make a tremendous impact on our community," Saiita said. "Together, we can make a difference."
      To date, the Integrity Chrysler Plymouth Charity of the Month program has contributed close to $1.5 million back to the community.