CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (April 12, 2013) - H. Carter Myers, III, a third generation new-car dealer in Virginia, has chosen to honor family members and dealership employees by naming them Ambassadors of the National Automobile Dealers Charitable Foundation.

"The Ambassadors program allows benefactors to basically set up a personal foundation that will contribute funds to a cause in perpetuity," said Myers, who served as chairman of the National Automobile Dealers Association in 2002. "Dealers want to contribute to the communities where they work and operate their businesses, and the Ambassadors program allows us to do that. It's a great program."

To become an Ambassador, a dealer, company, association or individual makes a tax-deductible contribution of $10,000 in their name or in recognition of someone living or deceased. Ambassadors are then eligible to provide $1,500 grants to organizations of their choice every three years in perpetuity. Donors with three or more gifts of $10,000, like Myers, are designated Ambassadors of Distinction and are eligible to present $2,000 grants every year in perpetuity.

Since 1999, Myers has named nine Ambassadors to the program, which include his grandfather, H. Carter Myers, Sr.; father, H. Carter Myers, Jr.; wife, Ann Myers; daughter, Liza Myers Borches; uncle, Francis Myers; father-in-law, Dr. Francis Taylor; long time employees, Michael Erwin and Karl Soloe; and himself.

"We select causes that hold a special meaning to the person the ambassadorship was named after," said Myers, executive chairman of Carter Myers Automotive, which runs eight dealerships in central Virginia.

For example, to honor his father's legacy as a businessman in their community, Myers presented a $2,000 grant to the McIntire School of Commerce in Charlottesville in 2008. And in 2003, a $1,500 grant was given to the First Baptist Church in Petersburg, Va., in memory of his father-in-law, a small-town doctor who taught Sunday school at the church for 52 years.

"Donating to the church would mean a great deal to him, and the funds from the Ambassadors program will help continue the programs he started," Myers added. 

Myers has also named two employees, Erwin, a former vice president of dealership operation, and Soloe, a current vice president and service director, as Ambassadors in 2007 and 2013, respectively.

"They have been longtime, loyal associates to the company," he said. "We wanted to recognize them the same way we recognize family members."

Since 2003, Myers has provided 11 grants totaling $20,500 to the following organizations:

2003: First Baptist Church, Petersburg, Va. ($1,500) - H. Carter Myers, Jr.
2004: Salvation Army Child Care ($1,500) - Dr. Francis Taylor
2006: Virginia State University Annual Fund ($1,500) - H. Carter Myers, Jr.
2007: Foundation of the Virginia Recreation and Park Society ($2,000) - H. Carter Myers, Sr.
2007: The Bridge Ministry, Inc. ($2,000) - Dr. Francis Taylor
2008: McIntire School of Commerce ($2,000) - H. Carter Myers, III
2010: Historic Petersburg Foundation ($2,000) - H. Carter Myers, Sr.
2010: Charlottesville Free Clinic ($2,000) - Dr. Francis Taylor
2011: Shenandoah Heritage Center ($2,000) - H. Carter Myers, III
2011: The Bridge Ministry ($2,000) - Ann Myers
2012: Charlottesville Salvation Army ($2,000) - H. Carter Myers, Jr.
2012: Boys and Girls Club of Central Virginia ($2,000) - Elizabeth Myers Borches

About the NADA Foundation's Ambassadors Program

Today, there are 623 Ambassadors who provide about $250,000 each year to organizations in the public or private sector, supporting a variety of causes from emergency medical services and education to job training for adults with disabilities. This year, 135 Ambassadors will present grants to organizations of their choice. For more information or to become an Ambassador, visit the website, or contact the NADA Foundation at (703) 821-7102 or foundation@nada.org.

About the National Automobile Dealers Charitable Foundation

The NADA Foundation, established in 1975, is the philanthropic arm of the National Automobile Dealers Association. Funds contributed by new-car and -truck dealers and friends of the industry provide financial support to schools, private colleges and universities, emergency disaster relief and community service programs. For more information, visit www.nada.org.