Nov. 19, 2017 – West Bend, WI – Throughout October, automotive repair shops across the country were looking to end breast cancer with a unique fundraising campaign.
Bob’s Main Street Auto and Towing in West Bend, along with 131 independent auto repair shops across 35 states in the United States, raised funds for a breast cancer vaccine as part of the Brakes for Breast fundraiser.
In total Bob’s Main Street Auto and Towing raised $2,535.13, throughout the month, to give to the Cleveland Clinic. One hundred percent of what was donated goes directly to research.
With this fundraiser, auto repair facilities give away free brake pads or shoes. This year the brake pads were provided by Advanced Auto Parts in West Bend. This means the customer simply paid the labor and any other necessary parts to complete the brake job. Additionally, the shop donated 10% of the brake job to the Clinic. The money raised goes directly to Dr. Vincent Tuohy and the Cleveland Clinic Breast Cancer Vaccine Research Fund.
2017 marks the seventh year for the Brakes for Breast fundraiser and to say it has grown significantly is an understatement. The fundraiser started in 2011, where $10,000 was raised by just five auto repair shops. Last year, in 2016, over $125,000 was raised by 131 auto repair shops. This year it is expected to grow even more!
A few items that make this Brakes for Breasts fundraiser different from any other campaigns:
- Dr. Tuohy at the Cleveland Clinic has actually created a vaccine that has proved effective in laboratory animals to prevent breast cancer. Currently, they are gearing up for the start of Phase I of bedside trials. Think about Polio, eradicated because of a vaccine. Now, it is a distant memory for most generations, but this is the same principle. The goal is to help create a world where our daughters and granddaughters will never have to worry about the tragedy of facing breast cancer.
- Right now, Dr. Tuohy’s vaccine is specific to triple negative breast cancer, which is the most lethal for breast cancer since it has no real treatment.
- Dr. Tuohy has received the funding that takes care of FDA, trials, etc. from our donations.
- The research now is to continue the vaccine efforts with the other three forms of breast cancer, ovarian cancer, prostate cancer, and possibly a host of other diseases.
- The shops involved are just “mom & pop” shops across the country. This means they are just independent business owners that have joined hands for a great cause.
Bob’s Main Street Auto and Towing would like to thank all its great, loyal customers for their support in this campaign. The amount raised in October ($2,535.13) was twice the amount donated in 2016!
Without the continued support from customers, their recent fundraisers like Brakes for Breasts and Back to School with the Boys and Girls Club of Washington County would never have been as successful.
Bob’s Main Street Auto and Towing’s most recent campaign is to collect toys and raise money to go toward the Family Promise of Washington County’s Christmas Event.
This event will help give local, needy children in the area the Christmas they deserve. With a donation, in return, the shop is giving a free tire rotation or a set of free wiper blades (max $32 value) with any service. If you are looking to donate toys or help contribute feel free to stop by either of their locations or give them a call at 262-338-3670.
